The mindset in postmodernism is that objective truth does not exist. But in post-truth, the person believes that objective truth exists, but they subordinate truth to their preferences, or their comfort. In other words, one doesn’t care that truth exists or what the truth is if it doesn’t line up with one’s preferences. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. Faith in Jesus Christ is our response to God's elective purpose in our life. These two truths–God's initiative and man's response–co-exist throughout the Bible. The gospel is "the message of truth" because truth is its predominant characteristic. Salvation was conceived by the God of truth (Ps. 31:5); purchased by the Son, who is the truth (John 14:6); and is applied by the Spirit of truth (John 16:13). To know it is to know the truth that sets men free (John 8:32). Believers are people of the truth (John 18:37), who worship God in spirit and in truth (John 4:24), and who obey the Word of truth (John 17:17). People have rejected, neglected, redefined, and opposed God’s truth for centuries. Some cynically deny that truth even exists or that it can be known by men (John 18:38). Others foolishly think that denying truth will somehow make it go away. Truth determines the validity of one's belief. Believing a lie doesn't make it true. Conversely, failing to believe the truth doesn't make it a lie. The gospel is true because Jesus is true, not simply because Christians believe in Him. His resurrection proved the truth of His claims and constitutes the objective basis of our faith (Rom. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:3). Truth is our protection and strength (Eph. 6:14). Throughout history, people have tried everything imaginable to gain favor with God. Most turn to religion, but religion apart from Christ is merely a satanic counterfeit of the truth. At the heart of every false religion is the notion that man can come to God by any means he chooses–by meditating, doing good deeds, and so on. But Scripture says, "There is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). That name is Jesus Christ, and we come to Him by confessing and repenting of our sin, trusting in His atoning death on the cross, and affirming His bodily resurrection from the grave (cf. Rom. 10:9-10). There is no other way to God. False religious leaders and teachers talk much about God’s love, but not His wrath and holiness; much about how deprived of good things people are, but not about their depravity; much about God’s universal fatherhood toward everyone, but not much about his unique fatherhood toward all who believe in His Son; much about what God wants to give to us, but nothing about the necessity of obedience to Him; much about health and happiness, but nothing about holiness and sacrifice. Their message is full of gaps, the greatest of which leaves out a biblical worldview of the saving gospel and replaces it with the worldview of postmodernism with its dominant ethical system of relativism. The Bible describes mankind in the end times: “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim. 3:7). Spiritual answers cannot be deduced by human reason alone (1 Cor. 2:14). It’s not that spiritual truth is irrational or illogical, but that human wisdom is defective, because it’s tainted by man’s sinfulness, and unable to perceive the things of God. That is why the Bible is so important. It gives us the answers we can’t find on our own. It is God’s Word to mankind. Scripture is divinely revealed truth that fills the vacuum of spiritual ignorance in all of us. Post-truth is the word of the year for 2016 and also the philosophy of the day, According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. In a “post-truth” world, people make choices based on emotion and experience rather than objective fact. So in a post-truth world, truth is irrelevant. What exactly is a post-truth culture? It’s a culture where truth is no longer an objective reality. It has become subjective. It’s what’s true for me—my beliefs, my opinions, determine my truth. So in our post-truth culture, man determines truth. Man makes himself the ultimate authority. This starting point, which rejects God’s Word and the idea of moral absolutes, makes truth subjective. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Christianity is grounded in objective truth. “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Objective truth exists because we have God’s Word. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Thy word is truth” (John 17:17), and Paul and James describe the Bible as “the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15; James 1:18). The Psalmist says, “The entirety of your word is truth” (Psalm 119:160). Jesus Himself said, “For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” (John 18:37). When Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except by me” (John 14:6), He wasn’t expressing His personal belief or opinion. He was speaking the truth, a fundamental reality that doesn’t change from person to person. It doesn’t matter if our culture thinks all roads lead to God. The truth of the matter is “no one comes to the Father but by [Jesus].” This blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell

Category Archives: Christian News/Blogs/Articles Collection

Dec. 14, 2016 |

BLOOMBERG

Neither the U.S. nor European powers seem to have been aware that Russia and Turkey were negotiating a ceasefire and evacuation deal for Aleppo on Tuesday. After the capture of the ravaged but all-important city by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, this may be the new normal in Syria — one in which the West is more of a spectator than an active participant.

Starting Wednesday, Uber will let customers in San Francisco hop in a self-driving car, if they’re lucky enough to hail one. There’s a lot the company won’t say about the launch, like how many cars they plan to roll out, but it will gradually introduce self-driving Volvos in its hometown.

IBM Chief Executive Officer Ginni Rometty said she plans to hire about 25,000 people in the U.S. and invest $1 billion over the next four years, laying out her vision for filling technology jobs in America on the eve of a meeting of industry leaders with President-elect Donald Trump.

To U.S. intelligence agencies, the President’s Daily Brief is a gold mine of classified information from around the world, polished through the night for presentation each morning to the commander-in-chief. To Donald Trump, it’s a mind-numbing repetition of the obvious that he’ll often skip.

Some of the biggest names in finance are fighting for control of the London gold market — a $5 trillion, three-century-old trading hub that is being forced to adapt to a digital age. As the London Bullion Market Association revamps over-the-counter trades that are the market’s major pricing benchmark, new ways of buying and selling precious metals are set to start next year from CME Group Inc., Intercontinental Exchange Inc. and the London Metal Exchange. Some big banks have stakes in the outcome, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc and JPMorgan Chase and Co.

AP Top Stories

In one of the stranger chapters of Mexico’s drug war, angry people in a southern town kidnapped the mother of a gang leader to demand the release of their loved ones.

Rebel resistance in the Syrian city of Aleppo ended on Tuesday after years of fighting and months of bitter siege and bombardment that culminated in a bloody retreat, as insurgents agreed to withdraw in a ceasefire.

Police in the Saudi capital said on Monday they had arrested a woman for taking off her veil in public and posting pictures of her daring action on Twitter.

A Texas school district said an employee forced her religious beliefs on students after she decorated an office door with a scene from the cherished holiday classic, “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”

The UN’s weather agency on Tuesday announced the highest wave on record — a behemoth that towered 19 meters (62.3 feet) above the North Atlantic.

A pact by leading producers to cut output could quickly begin sopping up the glut on the oil market that has weighed on prices, the IEA said Tuesday as it also hiked its demand forecast.

The number of people left homeless after a 6.5-magnitude earthquake struck western Indonesia has soared to nearly 84,000, leaving authorities struggling to care for the victims, an official said Tuesday. The shallow quake last week killed more than 100 people and injured many more when it struck Aceh province, one of the areas worst affected by the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there had been a suspected gas attack in Islamic State-held territory near Palmyra on Monday, amid heavy aerial bombardment of the same area which together killed at least 53 people.

Hydraulic fracturing to release natural gas and oil can have a negative impact on the quality and availability of drinking water in the United States, the US government said Tuesday.

Israel on Monday became the first country after the United States to receive the U.S.-built F-35 stealth jet which will increase its ability to attack distant targets, including Iran.

On a “bittersweet day” that brought back memories of loved ones lost, President Obama signed into law legislation that makes new investments in cancer research and battling drug abuse.

Billionaire Bill Gates told CNBC on Tuesday that he sees the stock market as expensive, as the Dow Jones industrial average nears the 20,000 level.

BBC

The US has said it will limit arms sales to Saudi Arabia amid concerns over civilian casualties linked to air strikes in Yemen. Precision-guided weapons will no longer be delivered, a Pentagon official said.

The Brazilian Senate has approved a controversial amendment to the constitution capping public spending for the next 20 years.

Twelve people were arrested on Monday evening at a cinema in India, after they remained seated while the national anthem played.

WND

There’s been a slipup by the Trump transition team at the position for secretary of state. Nominee Rex Tillerson, CEO of ExxonMobil, not only has been supportive of the abortion industry, through his company’s donations to abortionists, but also played a key role in opening the Boy Scouts to homosexuality.

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar are supporting extremist Islamic groups in Germany, according to a leaked intelligence report.

Students at the University of Pennsylvania have removed a wall-sized portrait of William Shakespeare from Fisher-Bennett Hall and replaced it with a photo of the lesbian writer Audre Lorde. The author’s website describes her as a “black feminist, lesbian, poet, mother and warrior.”

Oklahoma plans to force hospitals, nursing homes, restaurants and public schools to post signs inside public restrooms directing pregnant women where to receive services as part of an effort to reduce abortions in the state.

ACTUV unmanned sub-hunter begins operational trials
Main contractor Leidos has announced that it is starting operational trials of the robotic sub-hunter it’s building for DARPA. The Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV) will take to the seas off the coast of San Diego, California in the coming months for tests of the unmanned ship’s sensors, mission control hardware and software, and the autonomy system.

Washington Post Reporter Warns Evangelicals about Their Rhetoric against ‘The Media’
Sarah Pulliam Bailey recently warned evangelicals about “dangerous” consequences of their rhetoric against mainstream media outlets…She argues that quality journalism is a friend to religion and that our implicit distrust of traditional journalistic organizations will work to undermine our own faith. R. Albert Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary continued “I would have to blame many of those very same mainstream media outlets for being part of a culture that has subverted the very idea of truth…”.

Missing Piece of 400-Year-Old Prophecy Portends Russian Conquest of Israel
The prophecy, attributed to the Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, the leading Torah scholar of the 18th century known as the Vilna Gaon, states, “If the ships of the Kingdom of Russia cross the Bosphorous Straits (in Northwest Turkey), we need to put on our Shabbat clothes, because this is telling you that the coming of the Messiah is very close.” Two months ago, the Russian Navy sailed for the Mediterranean…

‘Battle Royal Ahead Over Balfour’
We have already witnessed the chaotic launch of a campaign to persuade the government to apologize for Balfour – a House of Lords meeting where Jews were even accused of bringing the Holocaust on themselves.[1] That led to the resignation from the Liberal Democrat Party of the meeting’s host, Baroness Tonge.

Devastating wildfires in Eastern forests likely to be repeated, expert warns
“Fire has played an important role historically in the forest ecosystem in the eastern United States, but the balance created by frequent—but not catastrophic—forest fires was upset by the Smokey Bear fire suppression regimen beginning in the late 1940s. Now, Eastern forests, when faced with prolonged drought, are more vulnerable to hotter-burning, terribly destructive wildfires.”

5.1 earthquake within Fiji region
The 5.1 magnitude earthquake occurred at a depth of 463 kilometres at 3:46pm this afternoon. According to the Mineral Resources Department’s Seismology Unit, it was a moderate size earthquake with deep depth source location.

If Trump skews science, researchers must raise the alarm – Obama official
Scientists must confront climate change deniers and speak up if U.S. President-elect Donald Trump tries to sideline climate research, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell is due to say on Wednesday. “If you see science being ignored or compromised, speak up,” Jewell will tell a meeting of earth and space scientists in San Francisco, according to a draft of the speech seen by Reuters.

France reportedly postpones Middle East peace conference
France will postpone a proposed Middle East peace conference in Paris to January next year…with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refusing to participate and US attendance in doubt. France has been trying to persuade Netanyahu, who has repeatedly rejected the conference proposal, to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the French capital to try to revive moribund peace talks between the two sides.

Yemen conflict: US cuts arms sales to Saudi Arabia
The US has said it will limit arms sales to Saudi Arabia amid concerns over civilian casualties linked to air strikes in Yemen. Precision-guided weapons will no longer be delivered, a Pentagon official said. President Barack Obama’s administration said it was concerned over “flaws” in the way air strikes are targeted in Yemen.

Brazil: Clashes as Senate approves 20-year austerity plan
The Brazilian Senate has approved a controversial amendment to the constitution capping public spending for the next 20 years. The approval of the austerity measure is an important victory for President Michel Temer. He took office earlier this year promising to lead the country out of its worst recession in many decades.

US Osprey aircraft crashes off Okinawa coast in Japan
The US Marines have suspended flights of all Osprey military aircraft in Japan, after a crash off the coast of Okinawa island. The incident on Tuesday night injured five crew members onboard. It stoked immediate anger among locals, some of whom have previously complained about the US military bases and the Osprey aircraft’s safety record.

Israel seeking spot on UN Security Council, Netanyahu reveals
Israel is working to become a member of the United Nations Security Council in 2019, Prime Minister Benjmain Netanyahu revealed Wednesday during a state visit to Kazakhstan. At a joint press conference at the presidential palace in the Kazakh capital of Astana, Netanyahu asked Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev for assistance in getting Israel accepted as a rotating member of the 15-member council.

Record-breaking wave thunders through North Atlantic
A colossal wave recorded in the North Atlantic has smashed previous records for size. The 62 foot (19 meter) wave — captured between Iceland and the UK on February 4 2013 — has set a new world record for the biggest wave ever recorded by a buoy, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

Dallas Police Resignations Soar As “Insolvent” Pension System Implodes
A few days ago we noted that the Dallas Police and Fire Pension System (DPFP) took the unprecedented step of halting withdrawals from their DROP fund after a “run on the bank” pushed to the entire pension system, and the City of Dallas, to the brink of liquidity crisis (see “In Unprecedented Move, Dallas Pension System Suspends Withdrawals”). Now, a local CBS affiliate in Dallas is reporting that the pension crisis is driving a massive surge in police resignations.

Anti-Trump Elector Chris Suprun Paid For Ashley Madison While Bankrupt And Married With 3 Kids
Anti-Trump Texas faithless elector Stephen Christopher “Chris” Suprun, who wrote a widely-shared op-ed in The New York Times about his decision, in which he claimed ideological superiority over Trump, which would prevent him from voting for the President-elect on December 19 as he is required, joined and paid for cheating website Ashley Madison in 2012, using the same address registered to his 9/11 charity, while bankrupt, likely unemployed, and married with three young kids, after he and his working wife owed over $200,000 to multiple creditors — and that’s just the start of it.

Mexico Is Hiding The World’s Largest Pyramid
“It’s the most difficult archaeological site in all of Mexico. Bar none.” That’s Patricia Plunket Nagoda, the American-born archaeologist and anthropologist who has spent the past few decades working with Mexican anthropologist Gabriela Uruñuela at the Great Pyramid to unlock its less than forthcoming secrets.

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 13, 2016 |

BLOOMBERG

Venezuelans were wearily rushing to deposit bank notes or dump their cash savings entirely on Monday following an announcement by President Nicolas Maduro that he was invalidating the country’s biggest bill because of what he says is an attack on the nation’s liquidity. The socialist leader shocked the country on Sunday when he said the 100-bolivar note would be removed from circulation within 72 hours.

Exxon Mobil Corp. Chief Executive Officer Rex Tillerson will be nominated as President-elect Donald Trump’s secretary of state, setting up a potential confirmation battle with U.S. lawmakers who have questioned the oilman’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Donald Trump has chosen Rick Perry to be Energy Secretary, putting the one-time presidential candidate and former oil-state governor atop the agency charged with charting the nation’s energy future.

Chinese airlines are flooding the world with some of the lowest long-haul fares ever seen — and delivering a hammer blow to foreign carriers trying to keep up. From Delta Air Lines Inc. and American Airlines Group Inc. in the U.S., to Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. and Korean Air, many operators are feeling the squeeze from the extended reach of mainland Chinese carriers.

AP Top Stories

Jakarta’s Christian governor will stand trial on Tuesday accused of blasphemy in a high-profile case that has emboldened hardline groups and stoked fears of growing intolerance in the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation.

The United Nations said on Tuesday it had reports that Syrian soldiers and allied Iraqi fighters had summarily shot dead 82 civilians in recaptured Aleppo districts and a military source said the last rebel pocket could fall “at any moment”.

Iran’s flag carrier finalized a major deal with U.S. plane maker Boeing Co. to buy $16.6 billion worth of passenger planes Sunday in one of the most tangible benefits yet for the Islamic Republic from last year’s landmark nuclear agreement.

The last ship, still looking for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane MH370, left an Australian port Monday night for what may be its final search. If the missing flight is not found in the next few weeks, the search will be suspended by late January or early February.

On Wednesday, December 14, you’ll be able to see the last supermoon of the year. On that very same night, the Geminid meteor shower, one of the brightest meteor showers of the year, will reach its peak.

Nearly 40 percent of inmates in U.S. prisons could be released as they don’t pose any compelling threat to public safety, a study found. According to the report, setting the 576,000 inmates (39 percent) free could save $20 billion annually.

You can expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates this week, but look for it to shy away from the bigger question looming for financial markets: How does the shock outcome of the presidential election change the economic landscape? The Fed is widely expected to announce an increase in the target range for its federal funds rate to between 0.5% and 0.75% when its two-day meeting wraps up Wednesday.

American families are taking on increasing amounts of debt as incomes fail to keep pace. Indebted households today have credit card balances averaging $16,061 – just shy of 2008’s high.

Indian banks have taken back 12.44 trillion rupees ($184.24 billion) of high-value currency that the government abruptly abolished last month, Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor R Gandhi said on Tuesday. That represents about 80 percent of the 15.44 trillion rupees in 500- and 1,000-rupee notes that were circulating before Prime Minister Narendra Modi abolished them on Nov. 8, in a surprise move targeting counterfeiters and people holding undeclared wealth.

BBC

Two men involved in the November 2015 Paris attacks have been killed in Syria in a US air strike, officials said.

Belfast-based astronomers have helped to discover a very rare celestial event – a star being “swallowed” after it passed too close to a black hole.

Veteran US Congressman Chaka Fatah has been sentenced to 10 years in prison over charges including racketeering, bribery, money laundering and fraud. The 60-year-old Democratic Congressman represented the state of Pennsylvania for 22 years, and was one of Congress’ most senior black lawmakers.

A Tunisian man has been found guilty by a court in Sicily of causing the sinking of a boat in which 700 migrants died in April 2015.

WND

Only four of the original 24 Obamacare health co-ops remain standing after Maryland’s co-op announced Dec. 8 it was suspending the sale of individual health insurance policies, the Daily Caller News Foundation Investigative Group has found. With the near-collapse of Maryland’s co-op – called Evergreen Health – at least 989,000 individuals nationwide have lost their health insurance coverage when the nonprofit co-ops stopped selling insurance to customers, according to TheDCNF’s tally.

Oklahoma plans to force hospitals, nursing homes, restaurants and public schools to post signs inside public restrooms directing pregnant women where to receive services as part of an effort to reduce abortions in the state.

A strategy that has surfaced in several states to require churches to accommodate transgendered people by calling their buildings “places of public accommodation” has been reversed in Massachusetts after state officials were sued over the alleged constitutional violations.

A priest in Italy has caused uproar after announcing there would be no Christmas nativity scene at the local cemetery this year because it could offend Muslims and atheists.

Top News – 12/13/2016

Trump’s ‘Penny Plan’ Could Slash Federal Spending Over Decade
Trump told the New York Economic Club, “If we save just one penny of each federal dollar spent on nondefense, and non-entitlement programs, we can save almost $1 trillion over the next decade—again this is spending that does not touch defense, and that does not touch entitlements.”

‘Why on earth did Netanyahu offer Trump a Palestinian state?’
Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan blasted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu over his comments in a 60 Minutes interview broadcast on Sunday, in which the Prime Minister called for President-elect Donald Trump’s help in achieving a two-state solution.

Israeli officials will not meet visiting Swedish FM
It is highly unusual for a visiting high-level dignitary not to meet any Israeli officials. The move comes at a time of icy relations between Israel and Stockholm, which have been strained since the Social Democratic-led government recognized Palestinian statehood in 2014. Wallstrom arrives Thursday and is expected to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Spinning Black Hole Swallowing Star Explains Superluminous Event
astronomers propose that the source was an even more extreme and very rare event — a rapidly spinning black hole ripping apart a passing star that came too close. “We observed the source for 10 months following the event and have concluded that the explanation is unlikely to lie with an extraordinarily bright supernova.

Strong Earthquake Hits Solomon Islands for 2nd Day in a Row
A 6.9 magnitude natural disaster has struck off the coast of the Solomon Islands nearly exactly 24 hours after an even larger quake struck the same area of the Pacific. The latest quake initially triggered a fresh tsunami warning for the Solomon Islands, but that was lifted by authorities a short time later.

Iran to build nuclear marine propulsion after U.S. ‘violation’ of deal
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani ordered on Tuesday the head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran to start planning the development of nuclear marine propulsion in reaction to what he called the United States’ violation of the nuclear deal. Such propulsion would to be in marine transportation,” he said in a letter published on state news agency IRNA.

Israel receives F-35s, first country after USA
Israel’s first two F-35s landed in Israel at the Netavim Air Force Base in the South on Monday afternoon to a celebration that had been delayed five hours by fog in Italy that prevented the stealth jets from taking off. Israel became the first country after the US to receive the American-built jets, which will increase its ability to attack distant targets, including Iran.

Syphilis could become impossible to treat
Syphilis could become impossible to treat with key antibiotics, doctors warn amid concerns over a new drug-resistant strain. Once a death sentence, the vast majority of syphilis cases today are curable with penicillin injections. However, a new study reveals an aggressive new strain…is more widespread than previously thought – and there are limited ways to control it.

Palmyra: ‘Chemical gas attack’ hits IS-held Syrian area
Dozens of people have been killed in air strikes and a suspected gas attack near the Syrian city of Palmyra, monitoring groups say. The targeted area is controlled by the so-called Islamic State group and has been under heavy bombardment from government-aligned forces. Dozens of people are said to have been killed during the combined assaults.

Aleppo battle: UN says 82 civilians shot on the spot
Syrian pro-government forces have been entering homes in eastern Aleppo and killing those inside, including women and children, the UN says. The UN’s human rights office said it had reliable evidence that in four areas 82 civilians were shot on sight. “We’re filled with the deepest foreboding for those who remain in this last hellish corner” of eastern Aleppo, said spokesman Rupert Colville.

Venezuela closes border with Colombia ‘to destroy mafia’
Venezuela has closed its border with Colombia for 72 hours in the latest measure to combat smuggling gangs. President Nicolas Maduro says the “mafia” operating in border areas is causing huge damage to the economy. Many items subsidised by Venezuela’s socialist government, including diesel and petrol, are sold at a huge profit over the border in Colombia.

Indonesia blasphemy case: Emotional scenes as Ahok trial begins
There were emotional scenes in court on the first day of the blasphemy trial of Jakarta’s governor, a Christian of Chinese descent. Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, known as Ahok, cried as he denied allegations he insulted Islam. Mr Purnama is the first non-Muslim governor of Indonesia’s capital in 50 years.

Rocket alert sirens sound along southern border with Egypt
Incoming rockets sirens sounded in the southern Negev near the border with Egypt on Tuesday morning. According to initial reports, a projectile launched from Egypt in the direction of Israel triggered the sirens heard in several southern border communities, including Nitzana, Revivim, and Ezuz.

Israel looking to sell missile defense systems to Azerbaijan
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday began his visit to Azerbaijan, to which Israel is looking to sell missile defense systems. Netanyahu and the the South Caucus nation’s President Ilham Heydar Aliyev signed various bilateral agreements in a private two-hour meeting in Baku with security and defense advisors from both nations.

Germany Combats Antisemitism with New ‘Rent-a-Jew’ Program
Do we have horns? Do we all know each other? Why do we control Hollywood, the media, and the banking industry? Curious Germans might find answers to these questions through a new program designed to combat antisemitism called “Rent-A-Jew.” Many Germans “have never met a Jewish person,” writes Deutsche Welle, and the new program wants to change that.

CLIFF KINCAID — You couldn’t fault Donald J. Trump for concluding that the CIA is out to get him even before he starts his presidency. Former CIA officials Michael Morell, Michael Hayden and Philip Mudd have all denounced him. Plus, former CIA operations officer Evan McMullin ran against him as an independent presidential candidate…. (more)

JOSEPH FARAH — I’m glad someone as distinguished as former U.N Ambassador John Bolton said it first and not me. On Fox News Sunday, he said he doesn’t trust Barack Obama’s heavily politicized intelligence agencies to make a clear, objective conclusion that the Russians hacked the Democratic National Committee and released tens of thousands of emails to WikiLeaks to help Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton for the presidency last month…. (more)

JOHN FUND — The biggest surprise Donald Trump has provided as president-elect is just how conservative a cabinet he is putting together. “This is a more conservative cabinet than Reagan assembled in 1980,” says Ed Feulner, a key Trump transition adviser. As president of the Heritage Foundation at the time, Feulner provided guidance for Reagan’s choices…. (more)

ASSOCIATED PRESS — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he believes U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will be a good friend to Israel and hopes the two countries can work together to dismantle the international nuclear agreement with Iran…. (more)

PAUL BREMMER — Like seeds in a garden, refugees are being planted in cities and towns all across America. But the fact that it’s being done in secret should set off alarm bells, according to veteran WND reporter Leo Hohmann…. (more)

GREG COROMBOS — The woman who effectively authored the “heartbeat bill” is pressuring Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio, to sign the bill and not worry about whether the courts will find the law constitutional. On Dec. 6, both chambers of the Ohio legislature added the bill language to existing legislation on child welfare. It would prohibit abortion as soon as an unborn baby’s heartbeat can be detected…. (more)

BOB UNRUH — Education officials in New York City are submitting what amounts to “false reports” to those who enforce laws protecting the well-being of children of homeschooling families because they simply will not process the paperwork the families file in a timely fashion…. (more)

NEWSMAX — Kirk Douglas knows how to make an entrance. With boxing gloves in every centerpiece and the theme from “Rocky” blaring over the speakers, Douglas, one of the golden age of Hollywood’s last living legends, walked confidently into the Sunset Room at the Beverly Hills Hotel Friday afternoon to celebrate his 100th birthday at an intimate gathering of friends and family…. (more)

FOX NEWS — Louisiana voters chose Saturday to send Republican state Treasurer John Kennedy to the U.S. Senate, filling the nation’s last Senate seat and giving the GOP a 52-48 edge in the chamber when the new term begins in January…. (more)

NEWSMAX — Arizona Sen. John McCain said Saturday that he had “concerns” that ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson had deep ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin amid reports that President-elect Donald Trump planned to nominate him as Secretary of State…. (more)

MIKE LEE & MARK WALKER — Since 2010 everyone in the Republican party has agreed that Obamacare must be repealed. Most Republican members of Congress – – ourselves included – – were elected, and reelected, on the promise that we would take any opportunity possible to end this partisan, ham-handed, and unconstitutional law…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — President Obama warned Americans on Saturday that it could be the final year millions of people experience enrollment season and are able to enroll in the government-subsidized healthcare program if the GOP-controlled Congress moves to repeal his legacy law under President-elect Trump…. (more)

NEW YORK POST — Hillary Clinton and her supporters spent a record $1.2 billion for her losing presidential campaign – – twice as much as the winner, Donald Trump, according to the latest records…. (more)

NEWSMAX — Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani is no longer under consideration to serve as U.S. secretary of state under President-elect Donald Trump, the Trump transition team announced Friday after CNN broke the story…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — The Senate was poised Friday to overcome a late revolt by coal-state Democrats and pass a stopgap spending bill that keeps federal agencies running until April, averting a partial government shutdown with less than hour to spare…. (more)

TED CRUZ AND RON DESANTIS — On Election Day, the American people made a resounding call to “drain the swamp” that is modern Washington. Yet on Capitol Hill, we seem mired in the same cycle of complacency: The game hasn’t changed, and the players remain the same. Thankfully, there’s a solution available that, while stymied by the permanent political class, enjoys broad public support: congressional term limits…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — The New York Times’ executive editor said that his newspaper – – and “media powerhouses” across the nation – – “do not understand what motivates devoutly religious Americans.” Dean Baquet sat down Thursday with NPR for an extended interview on the media landscape following Donald Trump’s presidential election win on Nov. 8. Host Terry Gross essentially engaged in an after-action review in terms of what media outlets can learn from the election cycle…. (more)

BOB UNRUH — A Dutch court’s conviction of opposition political party leader Geert Wilders of “hate speech” for asking constituents whether they wanted more or fewer Moroccans to move into their nation (they wanted fewer) has not slowed him down…. (more)

CLIFF KINCAID — The New York Times is claiming the ability to expose “fake news.” It should know something about the topic. So-called “fake news” from the New York Times helped bring Fidel Castro to power. Castro had urged the Soviet Union to launch the nuclear missiles it had installed in Cuba on the United States, with the potential to obliterate tens of millions of Americans…. (more)

USA TODAY — President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to head Homeland Security is a blunt-talking retired Marine general who would become part of a small but influential team of former military officers with powerful influence over security policy in the next administration…. (more)

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 12, 2016 |

The U.S. Supreme Court let stand a Colorado law that imposes reporting requirements on internet retailers in an effort to get customers to pay the sales taxes they owe.

Lockheed Martin slumped after President-elect Donald Trump tweeted that costs for the F-35 fighter-jet program, the Pentagon’s most expensive weapons system, are “out of control.”

A cache of documents from Deutsche Bank AG include what a group of silver investors claim is a “smoking gun”: private electronic chats showing traders from numerous banks conspiring to rig prices from 2007 to 2013, according to a court filing in New York last week.

China is embracing Southeast Asia with a renewed trade and investment push, a trend that’s set to accelerate as the region grapples with the prospect of a more protectionist U.S. under Donald Trump.

Bill Gates and more than a dozen of the world’s wealthiest individuals revealed a new $1 billion investment fund late Sunday to foster major advances in clean energy production.

Shopping has overtaken gambling as the biggest earner in Singapore’s tourism industry for the first time since 2012, surging 44 percent in the six months through June from a year ago.

AP Top Stories

More than 20 people were killed Sunday in a suicide truck bombing in the Somali capital Mogadishu, police said, in a fresh strike claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab group.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter arrived in Baghdad on Sunday for talks with Iraqi leaders on the U.S.-backed military campaign against Islamic State militants in Mosul, the Pentagon said.

Egypt’s Copts, targeted in a church bombing that killed 23 people in Cairo on Sunday, are the Middle East’s largest Christian minority community, and also one of the oldest. Making up about 10 percent of Egypt’s population of 90 million, the Coptic Orthodox are the largest Christian denomination in the Muslim-majority country.

Donald Trump’s election has led to unease over threats to peace in the region, Iran’s defense minister said on Sunday, warning that a war would destroy Israel and the small Gulf Arab states.

Eleven countries agreed on Saturday to cut their oil output, teaming up with the OPEC cartel in an exceptional bid to end the world’s glut of crude and reverse a dramatic fall in income.

More than 30 people died when a tanker carrying flammable materials crashed into other vehicles and burst into flames outside the town of Naivasha in Kenya late on Saturday, officials said.

Venezuela’s socialist government has seized nearly 4 million toys from a private company and says it intends to hand them out as Christmas gifts to poor children this holiday season.

Drawing the U.S. deeper into the Syria conflict, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced Saturday he is sending 200 more troops to accelerate the push on the Islamic State’s self-declared capital of Raqqa.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday rejected a demand by Maoist-led rebels to free more prisoners as part of a ceasefire deal, saying he had made enough concessions and was willing to let peace talks collapse if necessary.

Spend your flight flirting with the brunette in 32B. That’s where the Tinder-esque dating app AirDates comes in. It’s like other mobile dating options, except this one is for air travelers looking for a connection, or even love, before, during or after a trip.

Top executives from Alphabet Inc, Apple Inc and Facebook Inc are among a small group of tech leaders invited to a summit to be held on Wednesday by President-elect Donald Trump. Executives from Microsoft Corp, Intel Corp and Oracle Corp will also be among “a very heady group of less than a dozen, comprising most of the key players in the sector” to attend the summit, Recode said. Billionaire entrepreneur and Tesla Motors Inc CEO Elon Musk will also be in attendance.

The US-led military coalition has killed a leader of the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria, the Pentagon said on Saturday.

South Korea’s agriculture ministry said it will issue a temporary nationwide ban on the transportation of poultry to contain the spread of bird flu, with 43 outbreaks recorded in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.

A Philadelphia Democrat who spent two decades in Congress could spend that long in prison if federal prosecutors get their way at his sentencing Monday.

BBC

Syrian government forces have made major gains in southern Aleppo, state media and activists say, leaving rebels with only a small pocket in the city.

Two girls said to be aged seven or eight have been used to bomb a market in north-east Nigeria, killing at least one other person and wounding 18.

Turkish police have detained 235 people for acting on behalf of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), the interior ministry said.

The Venezuelan government has announced it will remove the country’s highest-denomination banknote from circulation within 72 hours to combat contraband. There are more than six billion 100-bolivar notes in circulation, making up almost half of all currency. Venezuelans will have 10 days from Wednesday to exchange the notes for coins and new, higher-value bills.

IMF chief Christine Lagarde has gone on trial in France for negligence over a compensation payment made by a state-owned bank to a businessman in 2008.

WND

A bill meant to help those with developmental disabilities would allow government agencies to locate people with tracking devices, which has some concerned the measure gives the federal government too much authority and power.

Refugees are being planted in cities and towns all across America. But the fact that it’s being done in secret should set off alarm bells.

Top News – 12/12/2016

Mount St. Helens shakes 120 times within a week
In less than a week, four swarms of more than 120 earthquakes shook Mount St. Helens in late November. Although they were too small to be felt even by someone standing directly over their epicenters, scientists say they reveal the volcano is likely recharging. “Each of these little earthquakes is a clue and a reminder we are marching toward an eruption someday,” said Weston Thelen, a U.S. Geological Survey seismologist….

Trump Labels CNN “Fake News”
President-elect Donald Trump labeled cable network CNN “fake news” Saturday for its continued inaccurate coverage of his future role with NBC’s The Apprentice. Trump savaged corporate media giants face-to-face at a meeting in Trump Tower last month, where several network CEOs and prominent talking heads were told they were a pack of liars.

Hillary pleads to dismiss Benghazi lawsuit
The plaintiffs are arguing the case should to go trial because she doesn’t deserve special treatment as a member of the “political elite.” Clinton narrowly averted a default judgment in the case earlier when a judge adopted claims that she wasn’t properly served.

Japan protests over China’s complaint about fighter jets
Japan said on Monday it had protested to China over a Chinese complaint that Japanese fighter jets had engaged in “dangerous and unprofessional” behavior when they scrambled at the weekend as Chinese aircraft flew near Japanese islands. Chinese military aircraft on Saturday flew between Japan’s Okinawa and Miyako islands, and over waterways near self-ruled Taiwan…as part of long-range exercises, Taiwan said.

China warns Trump against ignoring its Taiwan interests
China expressed “serious concern”… after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said the United States did not necessarily have to stick to its long-held stance that Taiwan is part of “one China”… Trump’s comments…questioning nearly four decades of U.S. policy, came after he prompted a diplomatic protest from China over his decision to accept a telephone call from Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Dec. 2.

1,600 Flights Across Midwest Canceled as Winter Blast Rolls East
More than 1,600 flights were canceled at Chicago and Detroit airports Sunday as a winter storm swept through the Midwest on its way east, threatening to bring more snow to parts of Ohio that have seen nearly three feet. More than 1,390 flights were canceled in Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports — about half arrivals and half departures, flight-tracking website FlightAware reported.

Venezuela pulls highest-value banknote ‘to strike against mafia’
The Venezuelan government has announced it will remove the country’s highest-denomination banknote from circulation within 72 hours to combat contraband. Central bank data suggests there are more than six billion 100-bolivar notes in circulation, making up almost half of all currency. Venezuelans will have 10 days from Wednesday to exchange the notes for coins and new, higher-value bills.

Cyclone Vardah: Two dead as storm lashes south India coast
At least two people have been killed and thousands evacuated from coastal areas in two southern Indian states, as Cyclone Vardah lashed Chennai (Madras). Schools and businesses were shut and airport services suspended, as the cyclone made landfall with heavy rain and winds of up to 120km/h (75mph). Teams from the army and National Disaster Relief Force, along with two naval ships, are on standby.

Nigeria Maiduguri: Two ‘young girls’ used as human bombs
Two girls said to be aged seven or eight have been used to bomb a market in north-east Nigeria, killing at least one other person and wounding 18. Police in the town of Maiduguri, Borno state, say the attack happened when the market was crowded with shoppers. The girls detonated their explosives minutes apart, witnesses said. Both were killed.

Hamas offers missiles for armies willing to fight Israel
Palestinian terror group Hamas has offered to share its rocket arsenal with any Arab army willing to use them against Israel, Gaza-based Hamas official Fathi Hammad said Sunday to Al-Aqsa TV. Hamas has been manufacturing rockets on an industrial scale since it took control of the Gaza Strip, and has fired tens of thousands of projectiles during the past decade.

Analysis: Israel’s northern front – Hezbollah’s supply lines
Twice in the past week, Syria has reported an Israeli attack on military targets in the Damascus region, around 25 kilometers from the Lebanese border and approximately 50 kilometers from the border with Israel. …This is not the first time reports have been received regarding Israeli attacks on Hezbollah weapons convoy and arms caches in Syria, aiming to thwart the transfer of Syrian weaponry to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Foxconn Fires 25% Of India Workers As Demonetization Destroys Sales
While piecemeal anecdotes and surveys have already exposed the devastation that PM Modi’s demonetization plan has had on the Indian economy, tonight we see the first hard evidence as Foxconn has asked 25% of its workforce to leave after the cash ban caused sales to collapse by 50% forcing the company to slash production by half.

Former UK Ambassador Blasts “CIA’s Blatant Lies”, Shows “A Little Simple Logic Destroys Their Claims”
I have watched incredulous as the CIA’s blatant lie has grown and grown as a media story – blatant because the CIA has made no attempt whatsoever to substantiate it. There is no Russian involvement in the leaks of emails showing Clinton’s corruption. Yes this rubbish has been the lead today in the Washington Post in the US and the Guardian here, and was the lead item on the BBC main news. I suspect it is leading the American broadcasts also.

Ethiopian Judaism ‘Nearly Identical’ to Second Temple Practice
While the differences between Ethiopian Judaism and the Judaism practiced by religious Jews today have led some to disparage the Ethiopian connection to the Jewish people, Dr. Ziv said that many Ethiopian customs align perfectly with descriptions of Jewish life and laws found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, which date from the Second Temple.

Congresswoman Introduces ‘Stop Arming Terrorists Act’
Hawaii Democratic Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard last week introduced the “Stop Arming Terrorists Act” after visiting New York’s Trump Tower and meeting President-elect Donald Trump. Gabbard, an Army veteran and a member of the House Committees on Foreign Affairs and Armed Services, wrote: “If you or I gave money, weapons or support to al-Qaeda or ISIS, we would be thrown in jail. Why does our government get a free pass on this?”

Did Rabbi’s Vision Cause Russian Missile To Explode on Launchpad?
In a lecture that he gave in September, Rabbi Nir Ben Artzi reassured his followers that the S-300 anti-aircraft weapons system Russia was sending to Iran would not be a threat to Israel, despite what military experts claimed. He cited Psalms as the source of his prescient knowledge.

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 9, 2016 |

John Glenn, who was celebrated as a national hero after becoming the first U.S. astronaut to orbit Earth and went on to serve 24 years in the Senate and seek the presidency, has died. He was 95.

President Obama, whose administration failed to break the impasse between Israel and the Palestinians during eight years in office, is coming under pressure to act one last time as events in Israel and at the UN clash.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce told a closed-door gathering of Mexican and American corporate and government leaders that it is aiming to keep Donald Trump from fulfilling his campaign threat to tear up the North American Free Trade Agreement, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter.

Senate Democrats were trying to decide Thursday whether to risk a short-term partial shutdown of the U.S. government this weekend unless Republicans agree to demands to protect the health benefits of retired miners. “There is no consensus yet, we are still working out the strategy,” said Connecticut Senator Christopher Murphy.

OPEC is likely to bring the oil market into balance by the middle of next year, but its production cut looks set to fall short of its stated goal of draining the stockpiles that are depressing prices.

Undone by an influence-peddling scandal, South Korea’s President Park Geun-hye was impeached by parliament on Friday amid a wave of anger that could overturn the nation’s politics and increase pressure on some of Asia’s biggest companies to reform.

AP Top Stories

In contemporary European politics, there can only be one true xenophobic politician. Today, Marine Le Pen reminded us that she alone wears that crown. On Thursday, Le Pen, leader of France’s far-right National Front, announced that she would end free education for the children of undocumented immigrants. In a speech in Paris on Thursday, she said, “If you come to our country don’t expect to be taken care of, to be looked after, that your children will be educated without charge,” adding, “Playtime is over.”

Environmental advocates say they are shocked and worried after Donald Trump announced Thursday that he had selected Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, who has denied mainstream climate science, to administer his Environmental Protection Agency.

An air strike in Iraq has killed dozens of civilians in an area near the Syrian border still controlled by the Islamic State group, officials said.

At least 50,000 Islamic State jihadists have been killed by the US-led coalition since it began operations in Iraq and Syria in late 2014, a senior US military official said Thursday. A relentless operation using planes and drones from a dozen or so members of the anti-IS coalition since August 2014 has conducted some 16,000 air strikes against the jihadists in Iraq and Syria — two-thirds of them in Iraq.

Sears reported mounting losses on Thursday and acknowledged that the company has “fallen short” of expectations for a recovery. The company said revenue fell 12.5% to $5 billion in the third quarter, with losses widening to $748 million from $454 million in the period last year.

BBC

At least 30 people have killed in a suicide bomb attack in the north-eastern Nigerian town of Madagali, the army said. Two female suicide bombers detonated their explosives in a busy market.

Hundreds of men appear to have gone missing after crossing from rebel-held areas of Aleppo into government territory, UN officials said. Forces led by Syria’s government have seized at least 75% of eastern parts of the city from rebels in recent weeks.

Donald Trump has chosen an anti-regulation fast-food executive, opposed to a higher minimum wage, to lead the US Department of Labor.

Forms of sexual harassment in public in the Argentine capital could now land perpetrators with a $60 fine. Cat-calling and other types of harassment are seen as normal by some in Buenos Aires, but the city council voted on Wednesday to draw a line.

Australia has given approval for the sale of the country’s largest private landholding, the Kidman estate. It will go to Australia’s richest woman, Gina Rinehart, and her business partner, Chinese developer Shanghai CRED.

Muslim audiences should have better alternatives to mainstream cartoons, an Islamic leader in Australia has said. Sheik Shady Alsuleiman, the head of the Australian National Imams Council (ANIC), suggested parents donate to TV cartoons that support Islamic values.

China’s President Xi Jinping has called for the country’s universities to become ideological “strongholds” of the Communist Party, the latest move in a crackdown on academic freedom. The universities must “serve the rule of the Chinese Communist Party” and “promote socialism”.

WND

Three windmill-like turbines loom motionless over the city of Port Angeles’ new Waterfront Park. The $107,516 spires stand immobile more than two months after they were erected and more than a year after the city council approved them. Once they are working to generate electricity, they will produce so little power – $1.50 worth of electricity a month in savings – that at least one council member is regretting her decision to purchase them.

Terrified parents whose children attend Barron Trump’s pricey New York City prep school packed a contentious meeting to confront the Secret Service with their safety concerns.

North Korea is now capable of attaching nuclear warheads to missiles but has not mastered hitting a target, a senior US defense official has said.

Up to 1,750 ISIS jihadists have returned to Europe with orders to carry out attacks, an EU report has warned. About 5,000 European fanatics have travelled to Syria and Iraq with between 15 to 20 per cent dying on the battlefield. Up to 35 percent have returned – some with ‘specific missions’ – and 50 percent remain in the battle theatre, which amounted to between 2,000 and 2,500 Europeans.

The Briefing 12-09-16

The real consequences of fake news: Why evangelicals should be concerned with the truth

I’ve been watching the “fake news” nonsense very closely. It seems to be a mix of partisans looking for a reason, any reason, why so many people just rejected Hillary and by extension Obama when in their opinion Clinton was clearly the superior choice, (Remember the whole email private server thing, and the Clinton Foundation money, and the quarter million dollar “speeches” to the bailout banks, and the get out of jail pass from Comey, and the rigged primaries,

Why is our planet shaking so violently all of a sudden? There have literally been dozens of significant earthquakes right along the Ring of Fire within the past 30 days, and two giant ones made headlines all over the globe on Thursday. First, a magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck off the coast of Humboldt County, California, and that was followed later in the day by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake in the Solomon Islands. But of course these latest earthquakes are just the latest examples of increased shaking along the outer perimeter of the Pacific Ocean. Experts are not quite sure what to make of all of this shaking, but they are warning that “the Big One” could strike the west coast at literally any time. (Read More…)

Will the financial bubble that has been rapidly growing ever since Donald Trump won the election suddenly be popped once he takes office? Could it be possible that we are being set up for a horrible financial crash that he will ultimately be blamed for? Yesterday, I shared my thoughts on the incredible euphoria that we have seen since Donald Trump’s surprise victory on November 8th. The U.S. dollar has been surging, companies are announcing that they are bringing jobs back to the U.S., and we are witnessing perhaps the greatest post-election stock market rally in Wall Street history. In fact, the Dow, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 all set new all-time record highs again on Thursday. What we are seeing is absolutely unprecedented, and many believe that the good times will continue to roll as we head into 2017. (Read More….)

CLIFF KINCAID — The New York Times is claiming the ability to expose “fake news.” It should know something about the topic. So-called “fake news” from the New York Times helped bring Fidel Castro to power. Castro had urged the Soviet Union to launch the nuclear missiles it had installed in Cuba on the United States, with the potential to obliterate tens of millions of Americans…. (more)

USA TODAY — President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to head Homeland Security is a blunt-talking retired Marine general who would become part of a small but influential team of former military officers with powerful influence over security policy in the next administration…. (more)

BOB UNRUH — The Democratic Party’s energy policy for the 2016 election campaign took a hard line, including a refusal to acknowledge natural gas “has been the primary (and most cost-effective) driver in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.,” according to the American Legislative Exchange Council…. (more)

MICHAEL BARONE — It’s been a tough decade for the political left. Eight years ago a Time magazine cover portrayed Barack Obama as Franklin Roosevelt, complete with cigarette and holder and a cover line proclaiming “The New New Deal.” A Newsweek cover announced “We Are All Socialists Now.”… (more)

PHILIP KLEIN — Republicans are in the process of internally debating how to repeal and replace Obamacare now that they have unified control of government, but no matter what strategy they ultimately pursue, there’s one move they could make right off the bat to make their jobs easier: immediately act to prevent more individuals from newly enrolling in Obamacare…. (more)

NEWSMAX — President-elect Donald Trump said he would only use military force “when it is in the vital national security of the United States” and pledged Tuesday to seek elimination of the federal budget sequester…. (more)

GREG COROMBOS — A recently uncovered evaluation of Pentagon spending shows $125 billion could be slashed within five years, showcasing the challenge for the incoming Trump administration to make government more efficient, an effort that will also be tested by Trump’s call for a trillion dollars in infrastructure spending…. (more)

NEWSMAX — Republicans in the House of Representatives added language to a must-pass spending bill Tuesday that would speed up the confirmation of retired Gen. James Mattis for secretary of defense, Politico reported…. (more)

NATIONAL REVIEW — The Supreme Court vacancy left by the late Justice Scalia may have guaranteed Donald Trump’s victory. Exit polls show that among the 21 percent of voters who deemed the Supreme Court as the most important factor in their decision, Trump soundly defeated Secretary Clinton by 17 points. Now Trump can reward those voters with a successor worthy of Justice Scalia. And Trump has an opportunity to both mend rifts within his party – – a critical necessity for accomplishing his presidential goals – – and achieve a historic “first” with his selection. One name on Trump’s short list accomplishes all three: Utah Supreme Court justice Thomas R. Lee…. (more)

NEWSMAX — Republicans aren’t wasting any time with putting an end to Obamacare. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday told reporters that legislation repealing the Affordable Care Act will be the first thing the new Congress tackles, a move that will help President-elect Donald Trump keep true to his campaign promise…. (more)

NEWSMAX — President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed wall on the Mexican-American border should go up within the first year of his administration, according to the majority of Republicans in a new Rasmussen Reports poll…. (more)

ROLL CALL — For years, Republicans in Congress have been eyeing an overhaul of the federal workforce – – by reducing the number of workers and curtailing benefits and pay while making it easier to fire bad employees. – See more at:… (more)

MEDIAITE — The chairman and CEO of Time Warner thinks all the talk about Donald Trump being a threat to the First Amendment is overblown. In fact, according to Variety, not only did he completely dismiss the idea out of hand at a conference today, but he actually said that’s more an issue with the Democrats:… (more)

GARTH KANT — It’s difficult to imagine a more clear-cut a case of media bias. One reporter at a television station said on the air, “Ted Cruz is like the dark lord from Star Wars,” and, “I think he’s the Antichrist.” Another reporter at the same television station stated in a private Facebook post that she was “happy and relieved” the morning after Donald Trump won the presidential election…. (more)

NEWSMAX — Actor and director Denzel Washington chastised the media Tuesday over “BS” reporting, saying they should stick to the truth. “If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed; if you do read it, you’re misinformed,” Washington said at the premier of his upcoming film “Fences” at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, The Hill reported…. (more)

WESLEY PRUDEN — The populist saber continues to cut the elites down to size. The elites, who think they know it all and are uniquely qualified to tell everyone else how to live, took another pasting Sunday in the Italian elections. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi felt so humiliated by voter rejection of his proposals for constitutional reform that he quit on the spot…. (more)

ALAN KEYES — There are times when it is critically important to reason according to principle. Why? So that we can appreciate the relationship between one object, event, or circumstance and another. It is rather like family relations. Sites like ancestry.com have become increasingly popular because people see an advantage or benefit to be gained by increasing their awareness of kinship relations that go unnoticed until we begin tracing our roots back to their origin…. (more)

CLIFF KINCAID — With the selections of General James N. “Mad Dog” Mattis as Secretary of Defense and Lt. General Michael T. Flynn as national security adviser, President-elect Donald J. Trump has indicated that he is prepared to meet foreign threats from Russia, China, and global Islam. Indeed, Flynn argues in his book The Field of Fight that the U.S. is facing a “working coalition” of enemies that includes radical Islamists, Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, Syria, Cuba, Bolivia, Venezuela and Nicaragua…. (more)

GREG COROMBOS — Republicans in Congress are fired up by the chance to accomplish big things in the early days of the upcoming Trump administration and move away from the crisis budgeting that faces them once again in the lame-duck session…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — Democrats are increasingly antsy over the lineup President-elect Donald Trump has announced for his Cabinet, but they are also powerless to do very much to stop him – – thanks to their own leader, Sen. Harry Reid. It’s unlikely Mr. Reid had a President Trump in mind when he pulled the so-called “nuclear option” trigger three years ago, changing Senate rules to eviscerate the use of a filibuster to block presidential nominees…. (more)

SHANNEN W. COFFIN — Because Senate Democrats eliminated the filibuster for executive-branch appointments, President-elect Trump’s nominees should have relatively smooth sailing in their confirmations. The (not yet official) nomination of General James Mattis to be secretary of defense is the lone exception, and some Democrats quickly realized their opportunity to throw sand in the gears…. (more)

HUGH HEWITT — Donald Rumsfeld served his second tour of duty as Secretary of Defense from Jan. 20, 2001, to Dec. 18, 2006. He is one of America’s most accomplished public servants. And he was arguably the best prepared secretary of defense, having not only served in that job before, from Nov. 20, 1975 to Jan. 20, 1977, but having also been White House chief of staff, America’s ambassador to NATO and a congressman, among many other successes…. (more)

Top News – 12/9/2016

Trump’s pick for environment agency chief sued government over climate rules
Pruitt, who must be confirmed by the US Senate, is an ardent opponent of federal regulations to curb climate change and has questioned the science underlying global warming. He is one of dozens of state officials who have mounted a legal challenge to President Barack Obama’s limits on greenhouse-gas emissions from power plants…

Environmentalist Hyperventilates When Tucker Asks Simple Question
(Video) All regulations are good and anyone who challenges them is an accomplice to Hitler’s rise, is a denier,” Carlson summarized Schrode’s statement. “That’s not the kind of conversation that leads to solutions, it’s the kind that leads to demonizing other people, and that’s bad.”

Europe’s Epochal Elections
Now, thanks to elections in France and Austria, an answer is emerging; Europeans appear not ready to “go gentle into that good night” but will “rage, rage against the dying of the light.”

Tsunami warnings are cancelld after big Pacific earthquake
New Zealand – Tsunami warnings for several Pacific islands, including those in Hawaii, were canceled Friday after authorities determined that a powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck near the Solomon Islands did not pose a broad tsunami threat.

6.5M Earthquake Hits 100 Miles off Ferndale, Humboldt County
An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.5 struck Thursday morning about 100 miles of the coast of Ferndale, in Humboldt County, California. There were no immediate reports of damage. The US Geological Survey originally reported the 6:50 a.m. PT quake as having a magnitude of 6.8.

Democrats plot uphill fight against some Trump nominations
U.S. Senate Democrats plan to fight some of President-elect Donald Trump’s choices for top administration jobs, but history and the party’s minority status in the chamber are not on their side. A simple majority of 51 votes is needed in the 100-member Senate to confirm nominations. Louisiana will select its newest senator on Saturday. If the Republicans…hold on to the seat, they will control at least 52 seats…

Magnitude-6.5 quake strikes off coast of Humboldt County
A magnitude-6.5 earthquake struck off the coast of Humboldt County Thursday morning, followed by aftershocks. For the most part, the aftershocks have been insignificant. There have been no reports of damage or injuries. The USGS sent out a tweet confirming the quake, roughly 100 miles out in the ocean, west of Ferndale.

ISIS has flooded Europe with 1,500 highly-trained terrorists ‘ready to launch attacks’
MORE than 1,500 jihadists fighting with ISIS in Syria and Iraq have returned to Europe with orders to “carry out attacks”, an EU report warned. An estimated 5,000 European ISIS fanatics went to Syria and Iraq… Around 30 to 35 per cent have returned with “specific missions”, while the other half remained in the battle theatre – which amounted to between 2,000 and 2,500 Europeans.

Peace process should not be ‘all or nothing,’ says EU ambassador
Rather than cling to an “all or nothing” peace process, the international community should promote smaller advancements in areas such as water, Lars Faaborg-Andersen, the European Union’s ambassador to Israel said at seminar in Tel Aviv on Thursday. “We’ve spent too much time promoting an Israeli-Palestinian solution that is all or nothing,” he said.

Palestinian tries to stab Israeli police, shot dead: Israel
An 18-year-old Palestinian threatened Israeli border police with a knife at a flashpoint junction in the occupied West Bank on Thursday and was shot dead, Israeli authorities said. The incident occurred at the Tapuah junction near the northern West Bank city of Nablus, where a number of attacks have taken place in recent months, police said.

Japan tags dementia sufferers with barcodes
A Japanese city has introduced a novel way to keep track of senior citizens with dementia who are prone to getting lost — tagging their fingers and toes with scan-able barcodes.

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 7, 2016 |

BLOOMBERG

The House blocked an effort Tuesday by conservatives to force an impeachment vote against Internal Revenue Service commissioner John Koskinen, effectively taking the question off the congressional agenda for this year.

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a California insider-trading conviction in a ruling that will make it easier for prosecutors to bring cases against some people on Wall Street and in other parts of the country.

Credit Suisse Group rose in Zurich trading, leading European bank shares higher, as Chief Executive Officer Tidjane Thiam pledged to cut an additional $1 billion in expenses and lowered profit targets that were seen as too ambitious.

Over the years, Apple Inc. has become the poster child for U.S. multinationals accused of sheltering overseas profits to avoid the IRS. What’s gone largely unnoticed is that it’s been paid more than half a billion dollars by the U.S. government to do just that.

Some mortgage bond traders tangled up in investigations are moving into the shadow banking system, where their new employers have greater latitude to hire people with blemishes on their records.

Starbucks Corp. plans to add 12,000 locations globally in the next five years, signaling that the world’s largest coffee-shop chain still considers brick-and-mortar expansion a major part of its growth strategy. The target includes expanding to 5,000 cafes in China.

China’s investment is transforming its smaller Southeast Asian neighbors like never before while helping turn Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar into bigger destinations for its exports.

JPMorgan Chase, HSBC Holdings and Credit Agricole were fined a total of $521 million for rigging the Euribor benchmark as European Union antitrust regulators wrapped up a five-year investigation into the scandal.

Earlier this year, a couple of Russian programmers released an app called FindFace. It lets people take pictures of complete strangers and then almost instantly find them on social networks. See a pretty girl or guy on the street? Snap a pic, get to know them. What could go wrong?

AP Top Stories

On the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, a Sunday, Japanese bombers flew across Oahu, Hawaii, and began their assault. The attack killed more than 2,300 people, nearly half of them on the battleship USS Arizona. More than 1,100 were injured. After the attack, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered a speech before Congress, calling Dec. 7 a “date which will live in infamy.” The U.S. declared war against Japan.

A strong 6.4-magnitude undersea earthquake rocked Indonesia’s Aceh province early on Wednesday, killing at least 25 people and causing dozens of buildings to collapse.

A man charged with firing an assault rifle in a packed Washington pizzeria on Sunday told police he had read online that children were being held as sex slaves there and he wanted to rescue them, police said on Monday.

The British government launched a Supreme Court battle on Monday over who has the power to trigger the formal process of leaving the European Union, seeking to overturn a legal ruling that could derail its Brexit strategy.

On Monday morning, Amazon unveiled its new vision for the future of brick-and-mortar grocery stores: Amazon Go. The new service offered by the online-shopping colossus allows customers to walk into the store, grab what they want and simply leave the building – without interacting with another human being or waiting in line. Amazon says the company brought together the most advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence to eliminate cash registers in a new 1,800-square-foot store in Seattle.

The New York Post on Monday called Amazon’s register-less shopping experiment, Amazon Go, the “next major job killer” in the latest doomsday headline for retail workers.

BBC

Syrian rebels have left the last areas they held in Aleppo’s old city, while calling for a five-day truce to allow the evacuation of civilians.

A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight with 48 people on board has crashed in the north of the country. The army has recovered at least 21 bodies from the crash site.

A five-year-old Australian child born genetically male will grow up as a sterilized female after a court agreed to her having surgery. The child identifies as a girl but has no female reproductive organs. People with a combination of sex characteristics are called intersex.

India’s central bank has unexpectedly held interest rates at a six-year low. The cost of borrowing will remain unchanged at 6.25% ahead of a possible increase in US interest rates later this month.

Malta has become the first European country to ban gay conversion therapy. The bill against the practice, which aims to “cure” a non-heterosexual person of their sexuality, was voted through unanimously.

WND

Fifteen years after the U.S. government declared antibiotic-resistant infections to be a grave threat to public health, a Reuters investigation has found that infection-related deaths are going uncounted, hindering the nation’s ability to fight a scourge that exacts a significant human and financial toll.

Connecticut’s openly gay comptroller is targeting the American Family Association, one of the nation’s most prominent and respected Christian ministries. If Comptroller Kevin Lembo has his way, AFA could be kicked out of the Connecticut State Employees’ Campaign for Charitable Giving (CSEC) – even though they are qualified as a charity under the rules.

A group of legislators led by Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn introduced a resolution Monday demanding the National Museum of African American History and Culture include Justice Clarence Thomas in its exhibits.

Top News – 12/7/2016

Fulfilling Ezekiel’s Prophecy, Jacob’s Biblical Sheep Arrive in the Promised Land
The 2,000-year saga of the return of Jacob’s sheep to the Holy Land as prophesied by Ezekiel was officially launched with the first of 11 flights that took place last week. The timing of this tremendous occurrence is deeply Biblically significant and may in fact shed light on the fascinating history of the patriarch’s herd.

Fulfilling Ezekiel’s Prophecy, Jacob’s Biblical Sheep Arrive in the Promised Land
The 2,000-year saga of the return of Jacob’s sheep to the Holy Land as prophesied by Ezekiel was officially launched with the first of 11 flights that took place last week. The timing of this tremendous occurrence is deeply Biblically significant and may in fact shed light on the fascinating history of the patriarch’s herd.

Over Saturn’s Turbulent North
The view shows part of the giant, hexagon-shaped jet stream around the planet’s north pole. Each side of the hexagon is about as wide as Earth. A circular storm lies at the center, at the pole.

At least 97 dead after earthquake rocks Indonesia
At least 97 people were killed and dozens were missing or hospitalized after an earthquake struck the northwestern Indonesian province of Aceh early Wednesday morning, officials said. The death toll rose as rescuers pulled more bodies from the rubble.

Ohio lawmakers pass ‘heartbeat’ abortion legislation
Ohio lawmakers approved a bill that bans abortion once a fetal heartbeat can be detected, as early as six weeks after conception, clearing the way for one of the most stringent abortion restrictions in the United States if it becomes law. The Republican-led state House of Representatives and Senate passed the so-called “heartbeat” measure late on Tuesday, sending it to be signed into law by Republican Governor John Kasich.

GOP Readies Cuts to Federal Workforce Under Trump
For years, Republicans in Congress have been eyeing an overhaul of the federal workforce — by reducing the number of workers and curtailing benefits and pay while making it easier to fire bad employees. Now, with a president-elect who has promised to do much the same, 2017 could be the best time in recent memory to make sweeping changes affecting those who work for the bureaucracy.

‘Detailed’ Brexit plan demanded by Labour ahead of vote
Labour will demand the government publishes a “pretty detailed” negotiating plan when MPs debate the UK’s Brexit strategy later. MPs are expected to vote in favour of the government’s timetable, of starting formal talks by the end of March, while also calling on the PM publish a “plan” beforehand. The government has so far refused a “running commentary” on its strategy.

Report: Hezbollah accuses Israel of striking targets near Damascus
Hezbollah on Wednesday accused the Israeli Air Force of striking targets near Damascus early on Wednesday morning, according to Arabic-language media reports affiliated with the Lebanese terrorist group. According to reports, the strikes hit Mezze airforce base near the Syrian capital close to President Bashar Assad’s palace at around 4 am, causing large explosions and damage.

Settlement bill marks a revolutionary moment in Israeli history
A bill which could be tantamount to annexation of Area C of the West Bank and which overturns almost 40 years of Israeli judicial rulings on private Palestinian property rights, is set to head to the Knesset for a first reading on Wednesday. …The settlement bill would retroactively legalize those homes thereby solving a problem for the Israeli residents of Judea and Samaria.

Rookie’ Trump must fall into line: China media
Donald Trump is a “diplomatic rookie” who must learn not to cross Beijing on issues like trade and Taiwan, Chinese state media said Tuesday, warning America could pay dearly for his naivety.

Strong earthquake rocks Indonesia’s Aceh province
The U.S. Geological Survey says the shallow 6.4-magnitude earthquake that struck at 5:03 a.m. (2203 GMT) Wednesday was centered about 10 kilometers (6 miles) north off Reuleut, a town in northern Aceh, at a depth of 17.2 kilometers (11 miles).

Massive 6.2 earthquake rocks Trinidad and Tobago
An earthquake, magnitude 6.2, hit Trinidad and Tobago at roughly 5:42pm on Tuesday afternoon. The epicenter of the earthquake occurred just 16km south east of Scarborough, Tobago at a depth of 29km. It was located 78 km north east of Arima and 99 km north east of Port of Spain.

5 Afghan Teens In Sweden Charged With Raping Boy
Swedish authorities on Tuesday charged five teenagers from Afghanistan with aggravated rape for allegedly dragging another Afghan boy into a forest, threatening him with a knife and raping him.

CRISPR heavyweights battle in US patent court
During the hearing in Alexandria, Virginia, the USPTO judges challenged Berkeley’s central claim: that once its researchers demonstrated that CRISPR–Cas9 could be used to edit DNA in bacteria, any reasonably skilled person could have adapted the technique for use in more complex cells.

The Grand Canyon Between Islam and Christianity
The god of Islam is most definitely not the same as the God worshipped by Christians and Jews…the author (writing with Atif Debs) – both of whom are former Muslims – makes a convincing case that Islamic theology amounts to a complete contradiction of the Judeo-Christian faith.

The Emergence of the White Jew
A few weeks ago, I said to a close family member that radical feminists are hurting their own cause. “You are a white privileged male,” was the response I got in return. This new curse took me by complete surprise, as I have never considered myself either privileged or white.

If you listen closely, the global elite are telling us exactly what they intend to do. If they get their way, our world is going to look vastly different than it does now in the not too distant future. These elitists share a dream of an environmentally-friendly dystopian socialist paradise in which individual freedom is severely restricted for the good of the collective. Where you live, what you do for a living, what you are allowed to eat and how many children you are permitted to have would all be determined by an all-powerful central government that nobody would question or challenge. This may sound very bizarre to you, but the global elite really do dream of these things. (Read More…)

If you want to be a “Good Samaritan” to the homeless in your community, you might want to check and see if it is legal first. All over the country, cities are passing laws that make it illegal to feed and shelter the homeless. For example, in this article you will read about a church in Maryland that was just fined $12,000 for simply allowing homeless people to sleep outside the church at night. This backlash against homeless people comes at a time when homelessness in America is absolutely exploding. In a previous article, I shared with my readers the fact that the number of homeless people in New York City has just set a brand new all-time high, and the homelessness crisis in California has become so severe that the L.A. City Council has formally asked Governor Jerry Brown to declare a state of emergency. Sadly, instead of opening up our hearts to the rapidly growing number of Americans without a home, way too many communities are trying to use the law to force them to go somewhere else. (Read More….)

Top Headlines – 12/7/2016

Futures rise for third day in a row (Read More); Banks Lead Stock Rally as Bonds Gain With Hopes Pinned on Draghi (BBG)

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 6, 2016 |

BLOOMBERG

Elaine Chao said she will resign from Wells Fargo’s board if confirmed as President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the U.S. Department of Transportation.

New York City will ask the federal government for $35 million to cover the expense of securing Trump Tower, President-elect Donald Trump’s Manhattan residence and business headquarters, for the period between his election and inauguration.

President-elect Donald Trump said the latest Air Force One order should be canceled, citing the high costs of more than $4 billion for converting the Boeing jumbo jet for presidential use.

Chancellor Angela Merkel called for a ban on full-face veils and said she’ll protect Germany against future refugee waves, reaching out to critics of her liberal migration policy as she asked a convention of her Christian Democratic Union to back her bid for a fourth term.

As Donald Trump prepares to assume the U.S. presidency, luxury towers from Istanbul to Manila that bear his name become de facto government symbols, making them potential terrorist targets. Experts say the question of how to protect them and who should pay poses a complex ethical and legal dilemma.

Donald Trump met with Al Gore in New York Monday to discuss an issue the Republican president-elect has long scoffed at: Global warming.

Carrier Corp., the maker of air conditioners that was persuaded by President-elect Donald Trump to abort plans to close a U.S. factory, is increasing prices to stay competitive as higher costs weigh on the industry.

President Park Geun-hye is “ready” to face an impeachment vote Friday, according to a senior legislative leader, as an influence-peddling scandal that has shaken South Korea for weeks heads to a climax.

AP Top Stories

A trove of water may be hiding more than 250 miles beneath your feet. That’s where the Earth’s mantle meets the crust.

Over the weekend, the U.S. Department of State announced it had shut down a fake embassy in Ghana this summer with the help of local authorities. Turkish and Ghanaian organized crime gangs ran the scam with the help of a Ghanaian attorney, according to the State Department.

Left-leaning Alexander Van der Bellen triumphed over his right-wing rival Sunday in the vote for Austria’s presidency, a victory welcomed by moderate politicians across Europe as a blow against the populist forces looking to weaken the European Union.

Sea ice off Antarctica and in the Arctic is at record lows for this time of year after declining by twice the size of Alaska in a sign of rising global temperatures, climate scientists say.

Top U.S. military officials said they have started reshaping the country’s budget plans amid the growing threat from Russia as the latter continues to increase its military activities around the world.

Ancient people ripped out teeth, stuffed broken bones into human skulls and de-fleshed corpses as part of elaborate funeral rituals in South America, an archaeological discovery has revealed. The site of Lapa do Santo in Brazil holds a trove of human remains that were modified elaborately by the earliest inhabitants of the continent starting around 10,000 years ago, the new study shows.

Amazon has unveiled a new kind of retail store, with no cashiers. Customers at the concept store in Amazon’s hometown of Seattle, Washington, can fill their shopping carts and walk out — with the costs automatically tallied up and billed to their accounts with the US online giant. Amazon Go, which is being tested with Amazon employees and will open to the public next year, is a “checkout-free shopping experience made possible by the same types of technologies used in self-driving cars: computer vision, sensor fusion and deep learning.”

BBC

The UK will have to reach a Brexit deal by October 2018, according to the EU’s chief negotiator for Brexit.

Egyptian authorities have arrested doctors, nurses and professors suspected of being involved in an international organ trafficking ring. The arrests of at least 25 people on Tuesday also included organ buyers and middlemen.

South Korea’s military cyber command, set up to guard against hacking, appears to have been breached by North Korea, the military has said. A spokesman told the BBC that classified information was thought to have been stolen, although it is not clear exactly what data was accessed. The North has previously been accused of hacking into banks and media outlets but never the South’s military.

Tens of thousands of Brazilians have joined street protests against a vote which they say threatens to undermine a major anti-corruption investigation.

South Africa’s government is today setting out its case for why the country is withdrawing from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal has ruled it is unlawful for patients with terminal illnesses to choose how they die. Last year, a court allowed a terminally ill man the right to end his own life with the help of a doctor but he died before the ruling was made. The latest ruling overturns that decision.

WND

Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Twitter on Monday announced they had joined forces in an attempt to curb explicit terrorist imagery online. The move follows criticism from Brussels that big US social media groups have made insufficient effort to clamp down on hate speech.

A 16th century Buckinghamshire pub made famous by the visit of China’s President Xi Jinping and then Prime Minister David Cameron has been bought by a major Chinese firm.

Top News – 12/6/2016

Admiral Kuznetsov’s jets to be redeployed on shore
After the loss of two jet fighters from the Admiral Kuznetsov carrier squadron, other planes may be redeployed ashore at the Russian military base in Hmeymim, Syria, the Russia’s defence ministry told Russian media, the UNIAN agency reports.

Trump handed ‘trigger’ to end sanctuary cities
‘Hand over dangerous criminals or get your checkbook out’. the power of the purse is something Congress has at its disposal, and he intends to help Trump shut off the flow of federal dollars to sanctuary cities. As chairman of the House Appropriations Committee’s subcommittee on commerce, justice and science, Culberson said he acted on July 7 to notify the Department of Justice that it will need to change its policy.

Teetering Italian bank looks for investors
Shares in Italy’s most troubled bank, Monte dei Paschi di Siena, are down again amid rising concerns about its ability to remain solvent. Shares were down 3 percent Tuesday though the bank said it had achieved one part of a turnaround program. Bondholders agreed to swap some 1.02 billion euros (1.09 billion dollars) in subordinated shares.

FBI investigating ‘very specific’ threat to Los Angeles transit system
The FBI is investigating a threat to the Los Angeles metro system, after receiving information on Monday suggesting that an attack was set to be launched on a station used to visit Universal Studios on the network’s Red Line on Tuesday, officials say. The information came from an anonymous phone call to a public safety line overseas…

USGS records 5 earthquakes overnight in northern Oklahoma
The U.S. Geological Survey has recorded five small earthquakes in northern Oklahoma, including a magnitude 3.9 temblor near Pawnee where the state’s largest earthquake was recorded in September. A 3.6 magnitude quake also struck overnight near Cushing, one of the world’s major oil hubs. Five quakes have been recorded in the state since Sunday night.

ISIS declares Trump inauguration day ‘BLOODY FRIDAY’
ISLAMIC STATE has declared the day Donald Trump is inaugurated as US president ‘Bloody Friday’ as it fears a brutal backlash from the new regime. And the Islamic terror organisation is reported to have recruited a number of new English speaking operatives in recent months in a major bid to communicate messages ahead of the day.

Aleppo battle: Russia and China veto UN truce resolution
Russia and China have vetoed a draft resolution at the UN Security Council that called for a seven-day ceasefire in Syria’s embattled city of Aleppo. Russia said the document infringed the council rule allowing countries 24 hours to consider the final wording. The US dismissed this as a “made-up alibi”, saying Russia wanted to preserve recent military gains by Syrian government troops in Aleppo.

North Korea ‘hacks South’s military cyber command’
South Korea’s military cyber command, set up to guard against hacking, appears to have been breached by North Korea, the military has said. A spokesman told the BBC that classified information was thought to have been stolen, although it is not clear exactly what data was accessed. The North has previously been accused of hacking into banks and media outlets but never the South’s military.

DR Congo: Ethnic clashes leave 31 dead
At least 31 people died in clashes between ethnic militia and security forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo at the weekend, officials say. They say the violence in the central Kasai province was sparked by a row between an uncle and a nephew over the title of a traditional chief. Deputy Governor Hubert Mbingho N’Vula said 13 members of the security forces sent to quell the fighting were among those killed.

Saudi court sentences 15 to death on charges of spying for Iran
A Saudi court on Tuesday sentenced 15 people to death for spying for the kingdom’s arch-enemy, Iran, Saudi-owned media reported, in a ruling that could further stoke tension between the two rival powers. The Specialized Criminal Court in Riyadh sentenced 15 other suspects to prison terms ranging from six months to 25 years, and acquitted two, the Arabic-language al-Riyadh newspaper said on its website.

Pentagon buries evidence of $125 billion in bureaucratic waste
The Pentagon has buried an internal study that exposed $125 billion in administrative waste in its business operations amid fears Congress would use the findings as an excuse to slash the defense budget, according to interviews and confidential memos obtained by The Washington Post.

OUCH: Nobel Prize committee ADMITS the unthinkable about Obama…
There was widespread consensus the prize was politically motivated, and even Obama said he was shocked by it and didn’t consider himself worthy of the reward (but accepted it anyway). Since then, Obama’s set the record as the only Nobel Peace Prize laureate to have bombed another, when U.S./NATO planes bombed a hospital operated by Doctors Without Borders in October of last year.

Donald Trump has already lost one of his electoral votes, and there are indications that a number of additional electors may be prepared to abandon him. Prior to the election, I warned my readers that we would not officially know who the next president would be until December 19th. On that Monday, the 538 members of the Electoral College will gather in their state capitals in all 50 states to formally elect the next president. Throughout U.S. history electors have voted according to the will of the people more than 99 percent of the time, but in 2016 there is a concerted effort to persuade Republican electors not to vote for Trump. If 37 Republican electors can be convinced to vote for someone other than Trump, that would keep Trump under the 270 vote threshold needed to win and it would throw the election into the House of Representatives. Most people had considered this to be a longshot, but on Monday a Republican elector named Christopher Suprun publicly announced in the New York Times that he will not cast his vote for Donald Trump. On the other side, there are at least 8 Democratic electors that have already publicly pledged to switch their votes from Hillary Clinton to a compromise Republican alternative to Trump. (Read More….)

Anti-Trumpers trying to sow chaos in Electoral College

Fox News reports:

Amid a rowdy recount push in battleground states, anti-Donald Trump forces are escalating efforts to invalidate his election on another front: the Electoral College.

The people who technically choose the next president will gather on Dec. 19 to, presumably, make the results of the Nov. 8 presidential election official. Trump won 306 electoral votes in the election, well above the 270 needed to defeat Hillary Clinton and claim the White House.

But even as Clinton herself has conceded and joined President Obama in urging a smooth transition of power, a group of electors from Colorado and Washington known as the “Hamilton Electors” is trying to persuade other electors to unite behind a Republican alternative to Trump.

On Monday, they peeled off one Republican. Chris Suprun, from Texas, said he won’t cast one of his state’s 38 electoral votes for Trump because “I am here to elect a president, not a king.”

Why does “the news” have to be 99 percent bad news? It is certainly very true that our world is facing great challenges, and those challenges are only going to become more intense during the years ahead, but why can’t we celebrate the good things that are happening as well? For decades, one of the mantras in news organizations all over the country has been “if it bleeds, it leads”, but life is not all about death and destruction. Yes, if we only focus on the positive our life will be out of balance, but the same thing is true if we only focus on the negative. For those of us that are “news junkies”, it is way too easy to slip into the mindset that everything is bad in the world. Without a doubt, things are dark and getting darker, but there are also a whole lot of people out there that are doing their best to be lights in their communities. (Read More…)

The EU Is Warning American Tech Giants to Crack Down on Hate Speech Now … “They will have to act quickly and make a strong effort in the coming months.” U.S. tech giants including Facebook, Twitter, Google’s YouTube and Microsoft will have to act faster to tackle online hate speech or face laws forcing them to do so, the European Commission said on Sunday. -Reuters

Western governments are censoring speech in Europe and the US, an obvious pattern that clearly shows coordination.

In the US, there is a congressional effort to fund intel agencies that will investigate alternative media for ties to Russian propaganda. Such investigations , if they occur, will retard this sector and make further, free-reporting difficult.

In Europe, efforts to control speech and reporting are actually being aimed at American communication enterprises such as Google, YouTube and Microsoft (see excerpt above).

More:

The European Union (EU) executive’s warning comes six months after the companies signed up to a voluntary code of conduct to take action in Europe within 24 hours, following rising concerns triggered by the refugee crisis and terror attacks.

This included removing or disabling access to the content if necessary, better cooperation with civil society organizations and the promotion of “counter-narratives” to hate speech.

The code of conduct is largely a continuation of efforts that the companies already take to counter hate speech on their websites, such as developing tools for people to report hateful content and training staff to handle such requests.

Top powers in the US and Europe will not likely admit coordination to crack down on Internet news and views but this is obviously what’s happening.

It is true that European censorship justifications have a longer history. Complaints about terrorism and hate speech have been voiced for several years. In the US, the sudden emergence of concern over Russian influence on ‘Net-based media is a new phenomenon.

Nonetheless, the House has just passed a bill to fund investigations into Russian influence on American media (see here). Such investigations might involve the tracking of so-called Alt.right “hate speech” as well.

Western efforts to “control” the Internet will no doubt adopt certain Chinese solutions over time. In China the Internet is actively being used as an agency of repression. Citizens are to receive ‘Net-based “grades” based on docility and how well they obey laws and generally fit in.

The larger question as governments crack down on ‘Net-based speech is whether or not people’s awareness of what is actually going on in their societies will transcend censorship.

History seems to show that after the Gutenberg Press launched an explosion of new ideas in printed form it took Western governments (and the controllers behind them) many centuries to regain control – 400 or 500 years as a matter of fact.

Western governments face similar problems now. A whole generation of individuals has absorbed a new way of thinking promulgated by the ‘Net. This is one reason approval of mainstream media is in the single digits while up to 50 percent or more (in the US, anyway) admit to belief in “conspiracy theories” – versions of important events not dictated by government and secret forces operating behind government.

In aggregate these views posit a different society than the current one. Today’s society is an outgrowth of World War II reorganization and depends heavily on the dictates of massive governments and even larger corporate enterprises.

‘Net-based alternative sociopolitical organization tends to criticize such titanic social solutions and is often more libertarian based. The idea is that culture ought to dictate social organization and economic, political and even military control ought to be organized from the ground up instead of top down.

ALAN KEYES — There are times when it is critically important to reason according to principle. Why? So that we can appreciate the relationship between one object, event, or circumstance and another. It is rather like family relations. Sites like ancestry.com have become increasingly popular because people see an advantage or benefit to be gained by increasing their awareness of kinship relations that go unnoticed until we begin tracing our roots back to their origin…. (more)

CLIFF KINCAID — With the selections of General James N. “Mad Dog” Mattis as Secretary of Defense and Lt. General Michael T. Flynn as national security adviser, President-elect Donald J. Trump has indicated that he is prepared to meet foreign threats from Russia, China, and global Islam. Indeed, Flynn argues in his book The Field of Fight that the U.S. is facing a “working coalition” of enemies that includes radical Islamists, Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, Syria, Cuba, Bolivia, Venezuela and Nicaragua…. (more)

GREG COROMBOS — Republicans in Congress are fired up by the chance to accomplish big things in the early days of the upcoming Trump administration and move away from the crisis budgeting that faces them once again in the lame-duck session…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — Democrats are increasingly antsy over the lineup President-elect Donald Trump has announced for his Cabinet, but they are also powerless to do very much to stop him – – thanks to their own leader, Sen. Harry Reid. It’s unlikely Mr. Reid had a President Trump in mind when he pulled the so-called “nuclear option” trigger three years ago, changing Senate rules to eviscerate the use of a filibuster to block presidential nominees…. (more)

SHANNEN W. COFFIN — Because Senate Democrats eliminated the filibuster for executive-branch appointments, President-elect Trump’s nominees should have relatively smooth sailing in their confirmations. The (not yet official) nomination of General James Mattis to be secretary of defense is the lone exception, and some Democrats quickly realized their opportunity to throw sand in the gears…. (more)

HUGH HEWITT — Donald Rumsfeld served his second tour of duty as Secretary of Defense from Jan. 20, 2001, to Dec. 18, 2006. He is one of America’s most accomplished public servants. And he was arguably the best prepared secretary of defense, having not only served in that job before, from Nov. 20, 1975 to Jan. 20, 1977, but having also been White House chief of staff, America’s ambassador to NATO and a congressman, among many other successes…. (more)

ANDREW C. MCCARTHY — We’ve all seen these kinds of games. The team gets pushed around all over the gridiron . . . but it wins anyway. The opposing squad marches up and down the field with apparent ease, piling up yardage, chewing up clock. But each time, something goes wrong at the critical moment: here a fumble near the goal line, there a tipped pass intercepted and returned for a touchdown. At the end of the game, you stare at the stat sheet in disbelief: Your guys have been outgained by a whopping 150 yards, the other team has held the ball almost 40 minutes out of 60. Yet, somehow, you won, 10 – -3…. (more)

NEWSMAX — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday reiterated his harsh criticism of last year’s international nuclear deal with Iran and said he would work with President-elect Donald Trump on fixing it, The Weekly Standard reported…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — Some 175 immigrants were approved for citizenship even though their names weren’t properly run through the FBI’s name-check databases, potentially missing red flags that may have disqualified them from naturalization, the Obama administration admitted this weekend…. (more)

USA TODAY — A Green Party-backed campaign will take its fight for a statewide recount of Pennsylvania’s votes in the presidential election to the federal courts after it dropped a case in the state courts. “We are committed to this fight to protect the civil and voting rights of all Americans,” Jonathan Abady, lead counsel for the recount campaign, said in a statement. “Over the past several days, it has become clear that the barriers to verifying the vote in Pennsylvania are so pervasive and that the state court system is so ill-equipped to address this problem that we must seek federal court intervention.”… (more)

TIMOTHY P. CARNEY — “The free market has been sorting it out,” Vice President-elect Mike Pence said last week, “and America’s been losing,” Pence is a smart conservative, and he knows that the Trump administration will never make America great again with bribes and threats against every company that ponders exporting its jobs over the southern border to Mexico…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — A big question facing Republicans next year is how to pass a national healthcare reform law without taking a beating on Election Day. Obamacare has been implemented, and 20 million Americans have health insurance through the law. That means Republicans have to figure out how they will keep their promise to repeal Obamacare without angering the people who already receive coverage from the law…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — In the postelection world, many Americans remain vexed with the press – – convinced that journalists are guilty of biased reporting, or producing inaccurate, clueless, trite, elitist or even fraudulent news. Unbeknownst to many, the Society of Professional Journalists has a robust set of ethical standards in place “to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough,” advising journalists to “seek the truth and report it,” among other significant things…. (more)

DAVID FRENCH — Donald Trump has picked an honorable, thoughtful, and courageous warrior to lead the Pentagon. He knows how to lead men in battle. He’s an outstanding strategic thinker, and he’s unencumbered by politically correct nonsense. Trump’s cabinet is shaping up very well indeed, but this choice is his best and most crucial personnel decision yet…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — President-elect Trump announced a libertarian-like foreign policy at his first “thank you” rally in Cincinnati on Thursday night. While sharing core components of the tasks he will have his administration focus on, Trump rolled out new directions for the State and Defense Departments…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — President-elect Donald Trump urged his supporters Thursday to be the “agents of change” and to keep the pressure on elected leaders in Washington to make sure they deliver on the promises that he laid out in his victory over Hillary Clinton in the presidential race…. (more)

CNN — Rep. Keith Ellison’s past ties to the Nation of Islam and his defense of its anti-Semitic leader, Louis Farrakhan, are resurfacing as he campaigns to lead the Democratic National Committee…. (more)

JOSEPH FARAH — I knew the media were out of touch with the American people. I’ve known it for 35 years. It’s why I do what I do. It’s why I created WND – – the first independent online news company – – some 20 years ago. It’s why I wrote the book, “Stop the Presses: The Inside Story of the New Media Revolution.”… (more)

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 5, 2016 |

BLOOMBERG

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to decide whether Los Angeles County and two police officers must pay a $4 million award to a couple shot during a search for someone else. The case, which comes at a time of heightened national attention to shootings by police, will test whether law enforcement officials can be held liable when they needlessly provoke a violent confrontation.

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to decide whether religious hospitals and schools must abide by the federal rules that govern most private pension plans, taking up an issue at the heart of dozens of lawsuits that seek potentially billions of dollars.

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick of retired General James Mattis as defense secretary has some lawmakers warning that his Cabinet shouldn’t be stocked with military brass at the expense of civilian leadership.

Italy fell into political limbo after Prime Minister Matteo Renzi announced his resignation, with rival parties jockeying to fill the power vacuum following his crushing defeat in a constitutional referendum.

Monsanto Co., a lightning rod for critics of modern agricultural techniques, is introducing a new feature next year for its genetically modified corn seeds that it says will not only boost yields but cut down on fertilizer use and carbon-dioxide emissions. The seed giant, together with Danish company Novozymes A/S, has developed a coating for seeds made from a friendly fungus that helps corn plants in their earliest growth stages.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will visit Pearl Harbor with U.S. President Barack Obama at the end of this month, becoming the first leader of his country to go to the site of the Japanese attack that propelled the United States into World War II.

SL Green Realty Corp. is set to announce today that 1 Vanderbilt, the office skyscraper it’s building just west of Manhattan’s Grand Central Terminal, will have an indoor-outdoor observation deck more than 1,000 feet above the street. Foundation work has begun for the Midtown tower, set to be New York’s second-tallest at 1,401 feet and slated for completion in 2020.

China is already moving to replace the U.S. as trade champion. “Despite its recent setbacks, globalization remains an irreversible trend of our times,” Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Nov. 3 at a meeting where he and counterparts from Russia and four Central Asian countries discussed the possibility of a free-trade area.

AP Top Stories

Police are investigating a possible bias incident in which an off-duty New York City police officer who is Muslim says she and her 16-year-old son were harassed.

The Syrian regime’s advances in war-torn east Aleppo do not represent a “victory for Assad” or his Russian ally Vladimir Putin, British foreign minister Boris Johnson said Sunday.

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein is taking her bid for a statewide recount of Pennsylvania’s Nov. 8 presidential election to federal court.

Authorities in Ghana have busted a fake U.S. embassy in the capital Accra run by a criminal network that for a decade issued illegally obtained authentic visas.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country was moving towards allowing trade with Russia, China and Iran to be conducted in local currencies, as he continues his efforts to strengthen the falling lira.

U.S. military veterans spoke with tribal leaders on Saturday about their shared interest in blocking a multibillion-dollar pipeline project near a Native American reservation, with as many as 3,500 veterans joining protests at the site.

Venezuela will introduce six new notes and three new coins starting in mid-December to help alleviate practical problems in doing business with the world’s most inflationary currency, according to the central bank. The largest new bill, according to a central bank communique, will be worth 20,000 bolivars, just under $5 on the streets. It will be accompanied by notes of 10,000, 5,000, 2,000, 1,000 and 500 bolivars and three coins of smaller value.

Brent crude oil rose above $55 a barrel on Monday, trading at a 16-month high, on rising prospects of a tightening market after OPEC agreed a landmark deal to cut production last week.

BBC

Officials have opened a criminal inquiry into a fire that killed at least 36 people at a warehouse party in Oakland, California.

Fidel Castro’s ashes have been laid to rest in the Cuban city of Santiago, nine days after his death at 90.

Five countries in West Africa have decided to stop importing “dirty fuels” from Europe, the UN Environment Program said.

Police have fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of doctors striking in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. Dozens of mental health patients were said to have walked out of a hospital in Nairobi during the strike.

WND

Islamic State is planning a ‘Bloody Friday’ assault on the SAME DAY as Donald Trump is inaugurated as US president, it can be revealed.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said that despite Democrats losing the House, Senate, and almost two-thirds of state houses, the American people don’t want a new direction.

U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., the first black Muslim ever to be elected to Congress, emerged as the leading candidate as chairman for The Democratic National Committee, but is entangled in a controversy over recent and older anti-Semitic public statements caught on recordings.

Uber can now track their passengers’ locations after they are dropped off and even when their app has been closed.

Top News – 12/5/2016

Women of the Wall: Warring Against Torah
I oppose feminism and the proponents of this subversive ideology, be it the standard secular version, or the supposed Jewish version which even draws religious women to their ranks. “Women’s rights” is the purported desire, but in truth, it is an ideology opposed to the most basic constructs of a Torah life.

Trump Could Appoint Someone Totally Unexpected To Head EPA
Van der Vaart is a PhD chemical engineer who currently heads the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. If appointed and approved by Congress, Van der Vaart would be the first PhD scientist to head EPA. He also holds a law degree.

Pelosi Says Democratic Party Doesn’t Want New Direction
Pelosi said she doesn’t believe people in the Democratic party want to take a new direction during an appearance on “Face the Nation” Sunday. Despite the Democrats underwhelming results on election night, Pelosi said the party is not questioning its identity.

American Jews: Rethink Worship of Democratic Party!
There’s some totally illogical worship of the Democratic Party by American Jewry which goes against logic and history. And even worse is the fact that in today’s policies it’s a hotbed of the support of BDS, Palestine and other causes/ideologies that delegitimatize the State of Israel and support its destruction, Gd forbid. I am not exaggerating one iota here.

“Syrian 5th Corps” is new Shiite foreign legion
..the winning forces have begun building a military outfit modeled on the format of the victorious coalition. It is designated the “Fifth Corps” of the Syrian army, but debkafile’s military and intelligence sources can identity the new unit as the framework for an international Shiite brigade or foreign legion.

Vatican weighs in on power, limits of artificial intelligence
Among the scheduled speakers were several prestigious scientists, including Stephen Hawkins, a prominent British professor at the University of Cambridge and a self-proclaimed atheist…Werner Arber, a Protestant and president of the academy who works in the field of evolutionary biology..

Biblical Pillar of Cloud Protects Israel From ISIS Over Golan Heights [VIDEO]
A startling video which has been shared over 140,000 times on Facebook reveals without a doubt the hand of God protecting Israel against her enemies. The video, posted on Thursday by Israel News Online, shows what appears to be an enormous pillar of cloud, dust and rain hovering over the dangerous border between Israel and Syria

3.9-Magnitude Earthquake Rattles Near Pawnee
PAWNEE, Oklahoma – An earthquake rattled Sunday night near Pawnee, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. The earthquake was originally reported as a 4.2-magnitude earthquake, but was later downgraded to a 3.9 magnitude

6.0-magnitude undersea quake hits eastern Indonesia
A strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of eastern Indonesia on Monday, U.S. seismologists said. However, no tsunami warning was issued and there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

China’s Tibetian region hit by earthquake measuring 5.1 magnitude
A magnitude of 5.1 quake on Monday shivered a county in south-west China’s Tibet Region, no casualties and major damage reported. According to China Earthquake Networks Centre, a moderate quake was recorded in Nyainrong County at 5:34 am and the epicentre was at a depth of about five kms.

Obama administration fails to check immigrants against FBI databases, approves citizenship
Some 175 immigrants were approved for citizenship even though their names weren’t properly run through the FBI’s name-check databases, potentially missing red flags that may have disqualified them from naturalization, the Obama administration admitted this weekend. Homeland Security officials blamed computer code for the problem, which affected about 15,000 applications in total.

Trump attacks China in Twitter outburst
US President-elect Donald Trump has posted a series of tweets criticising China for its monetary policy and its operations in the South China Sea. “Did China ask us if it was OK to devalue their currency” and “build a massive military complex?” he asked. “I don’t think so!” China said both sides should “stick to basic principles” of the relationship.

Brazil: Thousands marches against ‘watered down anti-corruption bill’
Tens of thousands of Brazilians have joined street protests against a vote which they say threatens to undermine a major anti-corruption investigation. The biggest marches have taken place in Sao Paulo’s business district and along Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach. Demonstrators were angry after the lower house of Congress on Tuesday passed a number of amendments to a landmark anti-corruption bill.

Kerry: ‘Israel heading to a place of danger’ over settlements
…John Kerry appeared frustrated Sunday that more than 130 hours of conversation have failed to slow Israel’s settlement construction in the West Bank. Israel is “heading to a place of danger,” Kerry told the Saban Forum in Washington, warning of “an erosion over a period of time” of the chances for a real and lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace “by virtue of this continued settlement process.”

Bennett, Netanyahu, Kahlon break settlement impasse, wait for A-G’s OK
…Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu …would only allow his party to vote in favor of the settlement bill if it doesn’t harm the high court, meaning that the “Amona article,” overturning longstanding High Court of Justice rulings, thus postponing the outpost’s demolition, slated for December 25, would have to be removed. Bennett would only agree to remove the article if another solution was found for the outpost’s residents.

Snowden says Petraeus disclosed ‘far more highly classified’ secrets ‘than I ever did’
n an exclusive interview with Yahoo Global News Anchor Katie Couric, Edward Snowden says that former CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus — who is under consideration to become President-elect Donald Trump’s secretary of state — disclosed “information that was far more highly classified than I ever did” and yet never “spent a single day in jail.”

Social media ads to hit $50 billion by 2019 -Zenith
The amount of money spent on advertising on social media is set to catch up with newspaper ad revenues by 2020, a leading forecaster said on Monday. The rapid expansion of social media platforms on mobile devices, as well as faster internet connectivity and more sophisticated technology, has triggered a huge shift in the way many people get their news.

Small quakes hit New Madrid fault recently
The New Madrid Fault has had a fair amount of minor seismic activity in recent weeks. There’ve been no reports of damage or injuries. The Daily American Republic reports (http://j.mp/2g0qFbW) that the latest was a magnitude-2.9 earthquake Friday centered near Caruthersville.

Last Wednesday, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly voted to adopt 6 outrageous anti-Israel resolutions. These resolutions address a wide variety of issues including “a two state solution”, the status of the Golan Heights and a “lasting solution to the question of the City of Jerusalem”. Unlike UN Security Council resolutions, these UN General Assembly resolutions are not considered to be legally binding upon the parties, but they do show that virtually the entire planet is in favor of dividing the land of Israel and the city of Jerusalem. In addition, even though the U.S. voted against each of these resolutions, there is still a tremendous amount of buzz that the Obama administration may decide to go along with a UN Security Council resolution that would set the parameters for a “two state solution” before the end of Barack Obama’s term comes on January 20th. (Read More…)

The Briefing 12-05-16

Moral outrage over currency? Bank of England apologizes for including animal product in new £5 note

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 2, 2016 |

WORLDNETDAILY — It’s often said “personnel is policy” when it comes to an incoming president’s Cabinet selections, and that’s what has some of Donald Trump’s most fervent supporters asking, “Why THESE people?” In fact, Americans on both the left and right of the political aisle are expressing concern over the president-elect’s recent choices for key positions in his administration…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — Donald Trump loyalists have been outspoken about the risks of making Mitt Romney secretary of state, but the last 48 hours have shown how useful the former Massachusetts governor can be to the president-elect…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — President-elect Trump went on a “dinner date summit” with Mitt Romney Tuesday evening in New York City, and were greeted by a round of applause. The dinner at french restaurant Jean-Georges marked the second time the two have met in recent weeks, as Romney, a former critic of Trump during the campaign, is now being considered for secretary of state…. (more)

CHELSEA SCHILLING — The political world is abuzz with speculation about President-elect Donald Trump’s consideration of former CIA Director David Petraeus as his choice for secretary of state – – but Petraeus’ positions on a variety of issues, including gun control, could upset conservatives if he is indeed selected for the slot… (more)

WASHINGTON POST — President-elect Donald Trump has chosen retired Marine Gen. James N. Mattis to be secretary of defense, according to people familiar with the decision, nominating a former senior military officer who led operations across the Middle East to run the Pentagon less than four years after he hung up his uniform…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — “Lyndon Johnson was always to maintain that his wife’s radio interests were totally divorced from politics,” biographer Robert Caro wrote, “and that he, the politician in the family, had absolutely nothing to do either with acquiring KTBC’s license or, once it was licensed, with its operations.”… (more)

NEWSMAX — The national debt moved deeper into the red, surpassing $19 trillion, and staying above that dreadful number ironically on “Black Friday.” CNSNews.com reported that the federal debt moved above $19.9 trillion for the first time as of the close of business, Nov. 22, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, according to data released by the Treasury…. (more)

WORLDNETDAILY — Congress has backed away from its plan requiring young women to register with Selective Service for the military draft and will, instead, review the system to determine whether a draft makes sense any longer…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — House Democrats renewed Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s lease on power Wednesday, voting to keep her as party leader and insisting she bears no blame for her party’s staggering electoral losses over the past six years. She faced her toughest challenge yet in her 14 years at the helm, ceding more than 60 votes to Rep. Tim Ryan, a 43-year-old Ohio Democrat who said the party had lost touch with middle America and needed a shake-up to begin connecting – – and winning – – again…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — As Democrats hold their House leadership elections today, they are met with the stinging reality that they are now a party lost in the wilderness in search of an identity. The losses under President Obama have been brutal. In 2017, Republicans will hold the White House, the House, the Senate, a majority of governor’s seats, and the most state legislatures in history…. (more)

TIMOTHY P. CARNEY — “He didn’t even carry his district for Hillary Clinton,” Nancy Pelosi dismissively said of her failed rival for minority leader, Rep. Tim Ryan. It’s harder to imagine someone missing the point more completely. Only about one in 10 House Democrats in the 115th Congress will come from Trump country, according to data from Five-Thirty-Eight’s Harry Enten. Enten tweets that about 18 Democrats are in districts Trump won or tied. Tim Ryan is one of them, and Pelosi thinks that is a negative…. (more)

PAUL BREMMER — U.S. officials say Abdul Razak Ali Artan, the Somali Muslim immigrant who used his car and a butcher knife to injure 11 people at Ohio State University on Monday, may have been a “lone wolf” attacker who become “self-radicalized.”… (more)

WORLDNETDAILY — In response to Donald Trump’s tweet calling for the criminalization of flag burning, members of the Revolutionary Communist Party burned the American flag outside the Trump International Hotel in New York City on Tuesday…. (more)

CLIFF KINCAID — Donald J. Trump is labeled by CNN as a liar on a regular basis, while the dead communist tyrant Fidel Castro is lauded as a revolutionary hero. American reporters are in Havana, Cuba, to film people crying on their way to honor a dictator who had recommended that the Soviets launch a nuclear attack on the United States…. (more)

PHILIP KLEIN — By tapping House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Tom Price to serve as his Secretary of Health and Human Services, President-elect Trump has added to his team one of the most serious and knowledgeable Republicans on healthcare policy, and in the process pressed his finger on the scales of the internal GOP debate over how specifically to replace Obamacare…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — The Obama administration sees no problem with the low numbers of persecuted Christian refugees getting into the United States, and likely won’t pardon the millions of illegals seeking protection from President-elect Donald Trump…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — The Islamic State’s media arm claimed Tuesday that the Ohio State University student who carried out an attack on campus that injured 11 people was aligned with the terror group. The group’s news agency, Amaq, labeled Abdul Razak Ali Artan “a soldier of the Islamic State” who “carried out the operation in response to calls to target citizens of international coalition countries,” according to the Site Intelligence Group…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — Last Wednesday, in Albuquerque, NM, a pro-life pregnancy center sponsored by Project Defending Life, a Catholic ministry, was burglarized and set on fire. The arsonist ignited the altar and pews in the onsite Holy Innocents chapel, then set a rack of anti-abortion pamphlets ablaze…. (more)

PJ MEDIA — Pomona College is paying students to protest the new president-elect. That chilling detail trumps all the news about frantic college students who require safe spaces with Play-Doh and puppies to recover from the election. According to the Claremont Independent, Pomona College’s Draper Center for Community Partnerships advertised a November 9th anti-Trump rally in Los Angeles on Facebook. It wasn’t enough, however, for the center to promote a partisan political event…. (more)

ALAN KEYES — When the administration of government is grounded upon principles, clearly communicated and understood, all that is lacking is to appoint individuals firmly committed to respecting and implementing them. In such context, it can truthfully be said that nothing is more pertinent than the old maxim “Personnel is policy.” Clear purposes and goals are just so much lip service unless people are assigned to the positions most critical to putting them into action…. (more)

USA TODAY — The Wisconsin Elections Commission agreed Monday to begin a recount of the presidential election on Thursday but was sued by Green Party candidate Jill Stein after the agency declined to require county officials to recount the votes by hand…. (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — Jill Stein has everything she needs to launch a presidential recount. She’s got the cash, the grassroots fervor and the spotlight of an adoring media. But there’s one thing she needs to overturn Trump’s victory: a calendar…. (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — The IRS is plowing ahead with controversial plans to use its files to try to prod more people to sign up for Obamacare – – but the tax agency has promised Congress it won’t break any privacy laws. The letters are set to go out beginning next week, and are aimed at Americans who are paying the tax penalty rather than obtaining health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. The IRS says the 2010 law requires it to inform those individuals they could do better by signing up for the embattled program…. (more)

The Briefing 12-02-16

A clash of civilizations? Exploring the nature of the conflict between Islam and the West

Minor Earthquake Near the Kineret
A minor earthquake, registering 3.8 on the Richter scale struck northern Israel at 6:35 AM. The epicenter was just 5 kilometers north of the Sea of Galilee and the city of Teveria (Tiberias). No damage or injuries were reported.

Celebration, Challenges as Ethiopian Community Celebrates Sigd Festival
thousands of Israelis, including President Reuven Rivlin, gathered Wednesday at the Hass Promenade in southern Jerusalem to celebrate Sigd, a traditional Ethiopian-Jewish festival that marks the 50th day after Yom Kippur and brings together a variety of Jewish prayer customs, religious themes and especially communal bonding.Ethiopian-Israelis say the holiday dates back at least 2,500 years, to a time when Jews first arrived in Ethiopia following the destruction of the First Temple.

ADL’s 2nd-thoughts about Muslim DNC chief
On Thursday, Anti-Defamation League Chief Executive Jonathan Greenblatt called Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., disqualified for the position he is seeking as Democratic National Committee chief. Only a week earlier, Greenblatt had defended Ellison’s past association with Louis Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam. What changed?

Thick toxic smog clouds engulf London and Paris
A toxic smog cloud has engulfed London and Paris amid warnings of high pollution levels in the two capitals effecting millions of people. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan issued warnings for the first time at bus stops, Tube stations and roadsides in the capital because of what he described as “high pollution levels”. Meanwhile in Paris, a potentially more dangerous smog cloud has engulfed the city for two days.

Tennessee wildfires: Death toll rises to 11
The death toll from wildfires across the US state of Tennessee has risen to 11 as search and rescue continues. The cities of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge have suffered the worst damage. On Thursday, country music legend Dolly Parton said her charity would donate $1,000 (£797) a month to families affected by the fires.

IS group to step up attacks on Europe – Europol
Europol has warned that militants from so-called Islamic State (IS) will aim to step up attacks on European targets, as they face defeat in the Middle East. The European police force says more foreign fighters will try to come back to Europe, and “several dozen” capable of attacks could already be there. Their tactics could include car bombs, kidnappings and extortion, it said.

Mass prayer rally in Jakarta against governor ‘Ahok’
At least 200,000 conservative Muslims have gathered for Friday prayers and to protest against Jakarta’s governor, at a rally in the Indonesian capital. Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, better known as “Ahok”, is accused of insulting Islam during election campaigning. On Wednesday, Indonesian prosecutors confirmed his case could go to trial. Mr Purnama is Christian and ethnic Chinese – a double-minority in Muslim-majority Indonesia…

Stormy weather pours over Israel
Heavy flooding was seen throughout Israel Friday due to intense rainfall since Thursday afternoon. Crews on Mount Hermon reported snowfall on Israel’s northern peak. At least 10 people had to be rescued from extreme rains which poured off hills in the Galilee and Golan Heights.

Iran says extension of sanctions act by US Congress violates nuclear deal
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday that the US Senate’s vote to extend sanctions against the Islamic Republic for 10 years violated a historic nuclear deal… “The extension of sanctions by the US congress is a violation of the deal. We will report it to Iran’s committee, assigned for monitoring the implementation of the deal,” according to a statement by Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi…

Vatican Reports Surge in Exorcisms Worldwide
The Catholic Church reported a meteoric uptick in the number of demonic possessions its priests are encountering. To tackle the surge, the Vatican is offering what they call “a week-long course on how to perform exorcisms, expounding on the nature of angels and demons,” News Target reported. The course has attracted over 1,000 students and claims to educate them on the difference between genuine demonic possession and psychological disorder.

Twitter Threatens Trump Ban Over “Harassment And Hateful Conduct”
Since November 8th, the mainstream media and the social media giants of Silicon Valley have launched an all-out crusade against so-called “fake news” sources (of which we’re apparently one). Twitter has gone so far as to purge dozens of “alt-right” accounts and just yesterday Reddit CEO, Steve Huffman, announced that he too would ban the “most toxic” Trump supporters who had the audacity to call him names after he abused his administrative privileges to alter other people text threads.

Our Time is Short

What is The Gospel?

God made everything out of nothing, including you and me. His main purpose in creation was to bring him pleasure.

The chief way in which we as humanity do this is through loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

Instead of this, we have sinned against our loving Creator and acted in high-handed rebellion.

God has vowed that he will righteously and lovingly judge sinners with eternal death.

But God, being merciful, loving, gracious, and just, sent his own son, Jesus Christ, in the likeness of man to live as a man; fulfilling his perfect requirements in the place of sinners; loving, obeying, and enjoying him perfectly.

And further, his son bore the eternal judgment of God upon the cross of Calvary, as he satisfied the eternal anger of God, standing in the place of sinners. God treated Jesus as a sinner, though he was perfectly sinless, that he might declare sinners as perfect.

This glorious transaction occurs as the sinner puts their faith (dependence, trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ as their substitute. God then charges Christ’s perfection to the sinner, and no longer views him as an enemy but instead an adopted son covered in the perfect righteousness of his son.

God furnished proof that this sacrifice was accepted by raising Jesus from the dead.

God will judge the world in righteousness and all of those who are not covered in the righteousness of Christ, depending on him for forgiveness, will be forced to stand on their own to bear the eternal anger of God.

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the gospel.

The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it –or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.

The great misconception in our day is this: that God isn’t concerned to protect His own integrity. He’s a kind of wishy-washy deity, who just waves a wand of forgiveness over everybody. No. For God to forgive you is a very costly matter. It cost the sacrifice of His own Son. So valuable was that sacrifice that God pronounced it valuable by raising Him from the dead – so that Christ died for us, He was raised for our justification. So the gospel is something objective. It is the message of who Jesus is and what He did. And it also has a subjective dimension. How are the benefits of Jesus subjectively appropriated to us? How do I get it? The Bible makes it clear that we are justified not by our works, not by our efforts, not by our deeds, but by faith–and by faith alone. The only way you can receive the benefit of Christ’s life and death is by putting your trust in Him–and in Him alone. You do that, you’re declared just by God, you’re adopted into His family, you’re forgiven of all of your sins, and you have begun your pilgrimage for eternity.

The Gospel In A Nutshell

Now, with regard to this rule of faith—that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend—it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen “in diverse manners” by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics.

A Message from God

What exactly do Christians mean when they talk about the “gospel of Jesus Christ”? Since the word “gospel” means “good news,” when Christians talk about the gospel, they’re simply telling the good news about Jesus! It’s a message from God saying, “Good news! Here is how you can be saved from my judgment!” That’s an announcement you can’t afford to ignore.

Why Is the Gospel Good News?

So, what is the good news about Jesus Christ?

Since the earliest Christians announced the good news about Jesus, it has been organized around these questions:

Who made us, and to whom are we accountable?

What is our problem?

What is God’s solution to our problem?

How can I be included in his solution?

Christians through the centuries since Christ have answered those questions with the same truth from the Bible.

God

The first thing to know about the good news of Jesus is that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Everything starts from that point, so if you get that point wrong then everything else that follows will be wrong. Because God created everything—including us—he has the right to tell us how to live. You have to understand that in order to understand the good news about Jesus. To understand just how glorious and life-giving the gospel of Jesus Christ is, we have to understand that God is also holy and righteous. He is determined never to ignore or tolerate sin. Including ours!

Mankind

When God created the first human beings, Adam and Eve, he intended for them to live under his righteous rule in perfect joy—obeying him and living in fellowship with him. When Adam disobeyed God, though, and ate the one fruit that God had told him not to eat, that fellowship with God was broken. Moreover, Adam and Eve had declared rebellion against God. They were denying his authority over their lives.

It’s not just Adam and Eve who are guilty of sin. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the rejection of God himself and his authority over those to whom he gives life.

Once you understand sin in that light, you begin to understand why “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That’s not just physical death, but spiritual death, a forceful separating of our sinful, rebellious selves from the presence of God forever. The Bible teaches that the final destiny for unbelieving sinners is eternal, active judgment in a place called “hell.”

But . . .

Jesus Christ

The word “Christ” means “anointed one,” referring to anointing a king with oil when he is crowned. So, when we say “Jesus Christ,” we’re saying that Jesus is a King!

When Jesus began his public ministry, he told the people, “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news!” As Jesus died on a cross, the awful weight of all our sins fell on his shoulders. The sentence of death God had pronounced against rebellious sinners struck. And Jesus died. For you and me!

But the story doesn’t end there. Jesus the Crucified is no longer dead. The Bible tells us that he rose from the grave. Jesus’s rising from the grave was God’s way of saying, “What Jesus claimed about who he is and what he came to do is true!”

Our Response

What does God expect us to do with the information that Jesus died in our place so we can be saved from God’s righteous wrath against our sins? He expects us to respond with repentance and faith.

To repent of our sins means to turn away from our rebellion against God. Repentance doesn’t mean we’ll bring an immediate end to our sinning. It does mean, though, that we’ll never again live at peace with our sins.

Not only that, but we also turn to God in faith. Faith is reliance. It’s a promise-founded trust in the risen Jesus to save you from your sins. If God is ever to count us righteous, he’ll have to do it on the basis of someone else’s record, someone who’s qualified to stand in as our substitute. And that’s what happens when a person is saved by Jesus: All our sins are credited to Jesus who took the punishment for them, and the perfect righteousness of Jesus is then credited to us when we place our trust in what he has done for us! That’s what faith means—to rely on Jesus, to trust in him alone to stand in our place and win a righteous verdict from God!

Obviously each point can be elaborated on depending on how much time you have. Here’s the short version:

1) Jesus’ birth – Jesus, God himself, the creator of the universe, the Messiah, became a human being – took on flesh, and was born of a virgin.

2) Jesus’ life – Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to his Father. Though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never once sinned.

3) Jesus’ death – on the cross, Jesus himself took all our sins and paid for them. God the father counted all our sins to Jesus as if he himself had personally committed them. Then Jesus bore God’s wrath towards sin – the punishment we deserved – as a substitute for us.

4) Jesus’ resurrection – within 3 days, Jesus rose physically from the dead, proving that his sacrifice for sins have been accepted by God, since the punishment for sin was death. Jesus was seen by numerous people after he rose including 500 at one time (1 Corinthians 15).

5) Jesus’ ascension – Jesus ascended physically into heaven where he reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords. And someday he will return to the earth.

That’s the gospel, the good news, and if we believe in Jesus Christ and this good news and call upon him he will save us from our sins and give us eternal life.

That’s a simple way to remember the gospel – five fingers. Even a child can do it. So ask God to give you opportunities to share his good news today.

Please take the time to watch this clip, so that you might understand the authentic Gospel

This is the Gospel:

Friend, God is holy. There is a God in heaven who has created you and me, and He is the authority over both of us. He is perfectly holy. “In Him is Light, and there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And the problem with that is that if we want to have fellowship with God, we have to be light and no darkness at all. And yet here’s the problem: we are darkness. We are sinful. We’ve all broken His law. We’ve all lied, stolen, we’ve all looked with lust, we’ve all been angry with our brothers in our hearts. We’ve all fallen short of the glorious standard of perfection that God requires (Rom 3:23). And there’s nothing we can do about it. No amount of works, no amount of contrition, no amount of bad feelings, no amount of church attendance, no amount of Bible reading, no amount of evangelism can earn forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness which God requires (Titus 3:5; cf. Isa 64:6).

And yet God is gracious, and He loves us, and as His creatures He wants to display His glory in us by rescuing us from that. And so He sent His Son—God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ—to be born as a helpless little baby (John 1:14; 3:16; Col 2:9). God of the universe, Sustainer of the universe, Himself being sustained in the womb of a teenage Hebrew girl, and upholding the world by the word of His power (Heb 1:3) while He is upheld by the nutrients from her own body! Unspeakable! And in great humility, He grows up with the growing pains of life in a fallen world, though He Himself never being with any sin—without sin entirely (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26). And He lives a perfectly righteous life. The way that you and I have failed to live before God—the way that we have failed in thought, word, and deed, and fallen short of God’s glory—Christ never did. Not even a thought. He loved God, His Father, perfectly. He always walked in perfect righteousness. He lived the life that you were commanded to live, that I was commanded to live, that we failed to live. He lived that perfect life that God is worthy of.

And not only did He live for us, He died for us. He went to the cross. Our sin demanded death. Our sin demanded eternal punishment. Our sin demanded wrath—just wrath exercised on us for eternity (Rom 6:23). But because of the infinite worth of Christ’s person, He was on that cross. And on that cross, God exercised upon Him the full fury of His own anger (Rom 3:24–26; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:10–14), that was rightly due to me and rightly due to you, and that you will experience if you don’t turn from your sin and trust in this Messiah. Christ was born, lived, died, and was raised (1 Cor 15:3–4). And He rose from the grave after being dead, demonstrating His victory over sin and death.

And now God promises that if you turn from your sin, if you repudiate all that you are and all that you were and all that you love, and you turn away from a life of pursuing sin—and if you repudiate not only your bad works but your good works, if you turn from trying to earn your salvation by all the good deeds that you might want to do as a moral person—if you turn away from all of that (Acts 17:30–31), and you trust in Christ alone for righteousness (Phil 3:7–8; cf. Rom 3:28; 10:4), God promises that He will forgive you. He will have treated Christ on the cross as if Christ lived your life. And He will then treat you, justly and legally and righteously, as if you lived Christ’s perfect life of righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). And you can be saved to know the God you were created to love and enjoy. You can have the fullness of joy, the eternal pleasures that are at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Ps 16:11), and begin even now, because eternal life is to know God (John 17:3).

Friend, would you repent? Would you turn from your sin and trust in this perfect Savior to avail for you before God, to pay for your sin and to provide your righteousness?

Ready to start your new life with God?

Who do you think that I am?

With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.

Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.

Resource Links

CanIKnowGod.com is a website inspired by LifesGreatestQuestion.com, with new content, images, audio and video that will help you understand more about who God is and how to know Him. The site is mobile responsive and has an infinite scroll which makes for a very user-friendly experience. After you indicate a decision on CanIKnowGod.com, you are directed to a page that details what it means to have a new and transformed life through Jesus Christ. There’s even a Facebook page for daily updates, encouragement and scripture sharing.

Look to Jesus
Have you ever felt a little lost and wished there was a quick-start guide to your relationship with God? This is it!

30 Day Next Steps
John Beckett, a leading Christian businessman, has written a series to read over 30 days for new believers.

New Believers Guide
The New Believer’s Guide is a series of articles designed to show you how to walk in the new life Christ has given you— a life of faith and freedom.

Jesus Booklet
Jesus is the Savior of the world. Discover who Jesus is today in this series.

The Perseverance (Security) of the Saints

Notice all the Scripture references!

It is not just a handful of texts that teach the perseverance of the saints: the entire gospel sustains and confirms it. The Father has chosen them before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), ordained them to eternal life (Acts 13:48), to be conformed to the image of his Son (Rom. 8:29). This election stands (Rom. 9:11; Heb. 6:17) and in due time carries with it the calling and justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Christ, in whom all the promises of God are Yes and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20), died for those who were given him by the Father (John 17:6, 12) in order that he might give them eternal life and not lose a single one of them (6:40; 17:2); he therefore gives them eternal life and they will never be lost in all eternity; no one will snatch them out of his hand (6:39; 10:28).

The Holy Spirit who regenerates them remains eternally with them (14:16) and seals them for the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). The covenant of grace is firm and confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16–18; 13:20), unbreakable like a marriage (Eph. 5:31–32), like a testament (Heb. 9:17), and by virtue of that covenant, God calls his elect. He inscribes the law upon their inmost being, puts his fear in their heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:14ff.), will not let them be tempted beyond their strength (1 Cor. 10:13), confirms and completes the good work he has begun in them (1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 1:6), and keeps them for the return of Christ to receive the heavenly inheritance (1 Thess. 5:23; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:4–5).

In his intercession before the Father, Christ acts in such a way that their faith may not fail (Luke 22:32), that in the world they may be kept from the evil one (John 17:11, 20), that they may be saved for all times (Heb. 7:20), that their sins will be forgiven them (1 John 2:1), and that they may all be where he is to behold his glory (John 17:24). The benefits of Christ, which the Holy Spirit imparts to them, are all irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Those who are called are also glorified (8:30). Those who are adopted as children are heirs of eternal life (8:17; Gal. 4:7). Those who believe have eternal life already here and now (John 3:16). That life itself, being eternal, cannot be lost. It cannot die since it cannot sin (1 John 3:9). Faith is a firm ground (Heb. 11:1), hope is an anchor (6:19) and does not disappoint us (Rom. 5:5), and love never ends (1 Cor. 13:8).

“A simple layman armed with Scripture is to be believed above a pope or a council without it…” – Martin Luther

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

— Augustine

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Dec. 1, 2016 |

BLOOMBERG

House Democrats voted to keep Nancy Pelosi as their leader next year as she fended off assertions that a string of election disappointments means it’s time for a new generation and new type of leadership.

Apple Inc. plans to use drones and new indoor navigation features to improve its Maps service and catch longtime leader Google.

State-sponsored hackers have conducted a series of destructive attacks on Saudi Arabia over the last two weeks, erasing data and wreaking havoc in the computer banks of the agency running the country’s airports and hitting five additional targets, according to two people familiar with an investigation into the breach.

Nestle says it found a way to reduce the amount of sugar in chocolate by as much as 40 percent, a discovery that may give the KitKat maker an edge as food producers face increasing pressure from governments, health advocates and shoppers to make products healthier.

AP Top Stories

Cuban-American lawmakers have denounced President Obama’s tepid statement about the death of Fidel Castro, accusing the White House of whitewashing decades of human rights abuses. But Obama’s reaction fits a modern tradition of American presidents playing down, or entirely ignoring, those sorts of criticisms when responding to a foreign leader’s passing.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan explained his comments about a plan to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in a phone call with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, the RIA news agency cited Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov as saying on Thursday.

New revelations of the torture a California jogger endured while she was missing for three weeks following an apparent abduction include a message burned onto her skin by her captors, according to a local sheriff.

China has told Myanmar that they should work together to stabilize their shared border, in the wake of a series of attacks by ethnic armed groups on Myanmar security forces and thousands of people crossing into China to escape the violence.

Thousands of people have signed an online petition urging the Bank of England to ditch its new 5 pound notes following revelations the fivers are made of polymers that contain rendered animal fat. The bills entered circulation in September. BOE confirmed the notes contain tallow, the same substance found in candles and soap.

The end of the rainbow may mean jail time for one man who was caught on surveillance stealing a large pot of gold from a truck in New York City before scuttling away without anyone noticing. The NYPD is on the case, hunting for the thief who robbed an armored truck of a bucket of gold flakes worth $1.6 million Thursday.

North Dakota officials on Tuesday moved to block supplies from reaching oil pipeline protesters at a camp near the construction site, threatening to use hefty fines to keep demonstrators from receiving such critical supplies as food, building materials and even portable bathrooms.

President Obama has spoken with Tennessee’s governor to offer support for residents gravely affected by recent wildfires in the Great Smoky Mountains. A statement from the White House says Obama asked Republican Gov. Bill Haslam for an update on the ongoing response to the wildfires, which destroyed hundreds of buildings and killed seven.

BBC

Colombian authorities say evidence is growing that a plane carrying a Brazilian football team crashed because it ran out of fuel as it tried to land. The plane had no fuel on impact, corroborating audio of the pilot asking to land because of a fuel shortage and electric failure.

Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn has been proclaimed Thailand’s new king, 50 days after the death of his father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The prince accepted the throne following an invitation from parliament, formalizing his accession. He becomes King Vajiralongkorn, the 10th monarch of the Chakri dynasty.

Ukraine has begun surface-to-air missile tests over the Black Sea, west of the Crimea peninsula. Russia, which annexed Crimea in 2014, had called the planned tests a provocation and threatened to shoot the missiles down.

US executive Martin Shkreli became a symbol of greed when he raised the price of a tablet of Daraprim from $13.50 to $750. Now, Sydney school students have recreated the drug’s key ingredient for just $20.

The Gambia has banned the internet and international phone calls as presidential elections are held in the West African state. Officials have also banned demonstrations to prevent unrest after the elections.

The eurozone’s unemployment rate has fallen below 10% for the first time since 2011. Unemployment fell to 9.8% in October – its lowest rate for seven years.

The gun that wounded French poet Arthur Rimbaud has been sold for $460,000 at an auction in the capital Paris. It was used by Rimbaud’s lover, fellow French poet Paul Verlaine, during a heated argument between the pair in Brussels on 10 July 1873.

Russia has indicated it is ready to discuss opening four safe corridors to the besieged, rebel-held east of the Syrian city of Aleppo,. They might be used to supply food and medicine to the 250,000 people there.

WND

Congress has backed away from its plan requiring young women to register with Selective Service for the military draft and will, instead, review the system to determine whether a draft makes sense any longer.

All residents of Israel are going to have to join the biometric database, which will include high-resolution facial photos and the fingerprints from both index fingers, Interior Minister Arye Dery announced yesterday.

Top News – 12/1/2016

McAuliffe Says Clinton Is Finished With Politics
Terry McAuliffe, a longtime friend and associate of Bill and Hillary Clinton, said Wednesday that he thinks Hillary is finished with politics, the Washington Post reported. McAuliffe said that Clinton’s loss to President-elect Donald Trump has been especially tough for the Clintons.

The revolution that gave us Brexit and Trump could be about to hit France
First Brexit, then Trump, and now it seems like the Western Revolt could sweep through the halls of power in Austria, Italy, France and Germany by this time next year. Yet the elites are still reloading and firing the same pistol, hoping that this bullet this time will stop the approaching threat.

Report: Obama won’t force a peace plan before he leaves
Obama will almost certainly not pressure Israel to advance a peace process with the Palestinians during his final weeks in office, a new report claims. AP reported that it had obtained information from “US officials” that Obama had no intention of shaking Israel up with a new peace plan before he steps down.

First case of sexually transmitted Zika virus in the UK
A woman in the UK is thought to have been infected with the Zika virus through sexual transmission, health officials have said. Public Health England (PHE) said that one case of “likely sexual transmission” of Zika virus infection has been reported in the UK.

Prince Alwaleed says women driving ban hurts Saudi economy
An influential Saudi prince, the billionaire investor Alwaleed bin Talal, has called on his country to lift its ban on women driving cars. He said it was a matter of economic necessity as well as women’s rights to lift restrictions. Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world where women are not allowed to drive, and women’s rights activists have been arrested for defying the ban.

Martin Shkreli: Australian boys recreate life-saving drug
US executive Martin Shkreli became a symbol of greed when he raised the price of a tablet of Daraprim from $13.50 (£11) to $750. Now, Sydney school students have recreated the drug’s key ingredient for just $20. Daraprim is an anti-parasitic drug used by malaria and Aids patients.

Turkey’s Erdogan: Israel restricting Muslim worship
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey accused Israel of restricting Muslim worship while calling on all Muslims to embrace the Palestinian cause and protect Jerusalem. Erdogan made the call to Muslims on Tuesday during public remarks at the Symposium of Jerusalem Platform in Istanbul. A Turkish government document sent to JTA summarized his remarks.

Israeli minister: More than Arafat, Abbas is Israel’s ‘number one’ enemy
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is the leading enemy challenging Israel’s existence, said Yuval Steinitz, the National Infrastructure, Energy and Water minister, on Thursday. In an interview with Israel Radio, Steinitz said that Abbas and the Palestinian Authority seek the destruction of Israel.

Death toll in storms sweeping South increases to 5
Possible tornadoes swept through parts of Alabama and Tennessee overnight, killing five people and injuring more than a dozen as heavy rains from storms moving across the South produced flooding in areas previously suffering from months of drought.

House Democrats re-elect Pelosi as leader
House Democrats have re-elected Nancy Pelosi as their leader. The California lawmaker, who has led the party since 2002, turned back a challenge from Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan on Wednesday.

Unclaimed Dead To Be Buried In Mass Grave
Los Angeles County will bury 1,430 individuals in a mass grave Wednesday. “This holiday season, many of us are reminded how fortunate we are to be surrounded by loved ones,” Supervisor Don Knabe said at a gathering at the downtown Hall of Administration on the eve of the burial. “Sadly, not everyone shares this blessing.”